Leo Laporte
Born 1956 · Age 69
American technology broadcaster, author, podcaster and entrepreneur; founder of the TWiT podcast network and longtime host of tech TV and radio shows including This Week in Tech and The Tech Guy.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in New York City
Leo Gordon Laporte was born in New York City, son of geologist Leo F. Laporte.
Early college/college-radio broadcasting (pseudonyms)
Began working in radio broadcasting (early on-air names included 'Dave Allen' and 'Dan Hayes'). Exact start year is approximate (college radio era).
Started college (Yale University) — studied Chinese history
Enrolled at Yale University, studying Chinese history (later dropped out in junior year).
Dropped out of Yale (junior year) to pursue radio
Left Yale in his junior year to pursue a career in radio broadcasting.
Bought first home computer (Atari 400)
Began hands-on engagement with computers with an Atari 400 (late 1970s home-computer era).
Wrote software (QDial, MacArc) and CP/M/Mac/PC programs
Developed software for CP/M, Macintosh and PC platforms (including open-source programs QDial and MacArc). Year is approximate (1980s period).
Published Macintosh software article in Byte
Authored 'Habadex on Apple's Macintosh' in Byte magazine (evidence of early Macintosh work).
Operated MacQueue (Macintosh-only BBS)
Ran one of the first Macintosh-only bulletin board systems, MacQueue (operated 1985–1988).
Created/co-hosted 'Dvorak On Computers'
Launched and co-hosted Dvorak On Computers with John C. Dvorak — nationally syndicated computer radio show.
Hosted 'Laporte On Computers' on KSFO / KGO
Hosted his own computer-focused radio shows on San Francisco stations KSFO and KGO.
Hosted 'Internet!' on PBS and other TV work
Hosted Internet!, a weekly half-hour PBS show (aired in many cities); also reported on new media for other PBS programs.
Co-authored '101 Computer Answers You Need To Know'
Co-author (with Gina Smith) of a beginner's computer book published by Ziff-Davis Press.
Created/contributed to 'The Site' on MSNBC (appeared as Dev Null)
Co-created and contributed to The Site, a nightly tech newsmagazine on MSNBC; appeared as the motion-capture character 'Dev Null'.
Emmy recognition (Northern California Emmy)
Won a Northern California Emmy for his role as Dev Null on MSNBC's The Site (reiteration for clarity in timeline).
Won Northern California Emmy for 'Dev Null' (The Site)
Awarded a Northern California Emmy for his role as Dev Null on MSNBC's The Site.
Created 'Call for Help' and 'The Screen Savers' (TechTV era)
During the late 1990s he was a prominent on-air host on ZDTV/TechTV with multiple daily live shows that expanded tech TV to mainstream audiences.
Created/co-hosted 'The Screen Savers' and 'Call for Help' (ZDTV/TechTV)
Launched two of his best-known TV shows on ZDTV (later TechTV): The Screen Savers and the original Call for Help.
Managing Editor at Ziff-Davis Television / The Personal Computing Show (role)
Served as Managing Editor at Ziff-Davis Television and wrote/co-hosted The Personal Computing Show for CNBC (approximate period: 1990s–2000s involvement).
Contributing Editor at Access Magazine (2000–2001)
Served as a contributing editor at Access Magazine, a Sunday newspaper magazine supplement with wide circulation.
Published 'Leo Laporte's 2003 Technology Almanac' — Book of the Year
His '2003 Technology Almanac' was named Pearson Publishing's Book of the Year in 2003.
Began hosting 'Leo Laporte: The Tech Guy' (radio)
Started hosting The Tech Guy, a weekend technology-oriented talk radio program syndicated through Premiere Radio Networks (hosted 2004–2022).
Left 'The Screen Savers' (contract ended March 31, 2004)
Departed The Screen Savers after a dispute with management; last contractual day March 31, 2004.
Published multiple tech books (2004–2005)
Released several tech books: 'Leo Laporte's Guide to TiVo' (Oct 1, 2004), 'Leo Laporte's 2005 Mac Gadget Guide' (Nov 8, 2004), 'Leo Laporte's Guide to Mac OS X Tiger' (Aug 1, 2005), and 'Leo Laporte's PC Help Desk' (Sept 1, 2005).
Produced 'Call For Help' in Toronto after U.S. cancellation
After Call for Help was cancelled in the U.S., he produced a Canadian version for Rogers Communications (aired on G4 Canada and internationally).
Flagship show 'This Week in Tech' launched and anchored TWiT network growth
This Week in Tech served as the nucleus for multiple spin-off shows and the TWiT network's growth into dozens of programs.
Started calling his shows 'netcasts' and evangelized podcasting
Leo popularized the term 'netcast' as an alternative to 'podcast' and became a leading public evangelist for the medium.
Launched 'This Week in Tech' and early podcast success
This Week in Tech (TWiT) launched as the flagship show; won Podcasting Expo award for best podcast (Nov 2005) and was getting ~280,000 weekly downloads in early years.
This Week in Tech awarded at Podcasting Expo (podcast award)
This Week in Tech won an award at the November 2005 Podcasting Expo for best podcast (early recognition of TWiT's prominence).
Founded TWiT.tv (This Week in Tech network)
Founded the TWiT Netcast Network (TWiT.tv), an Internet podcast/netcast network focused on technology.
Acted in film 'Phoenix Rising'
Performed as 'Uncle Charlie' in the movie Phoenix Rising (film credit).
Published 'Leo Laporte's 2006 Technology Almanac' and retired from book publishing
Released the 2006 almanac and in October 2006 announced he would not renew his contract with Que Publishing, retiring from publishing books.
Call for Help production moved to Vancouver; show renamed 'The Lab with Leo Laporte'
Rogers moved production to Vancouver in 2007 and rebranded the Canadian-produced Call for Help as The Lab with Leo Laporte.
Recorded voiceover/narration work (Audible)
Narrated audiobooks/content for Audible (evidence of diversification of activities in 2008).
TWiT Live first-month viewership milestone
TWiT Live's first month drew 2.6 million viewers for the new live video stream (May 2008 metric).
Narrated Andrew Lang fable for Audible
Provided voice narration of 'The True History of Little Golden-hood' (Andrew Lang) for Audible (2008).
Confirmed cancellation of 'The Lab with Leo Laporte'
On March 5, 2008 he confirmed on net@nite that The Lab had been canceled; remaining episodes were not aired by some outlets.
Launched 'TWiT Live' streaming video
In May 2008 launched a live-streaming video version of TWiT called 'TWiT Live' with 25 hours of original programming weekly; 2.6 million people watched in its first month.
'The Lab' ended its ten-year run (May 2008)
The Lab/Call for Help series ended in May 2008 after roughly a decade of various incarnations and production locations.
TWiT revenue reported at ~$1.5M annually (public report)
Press reporting (e.g., Mashable/other outlets citing Laporte) indicated TWiT was earning about US$1.5 million annually with production costs around US$350,000 prior to expansion to new facilities.
Wrote foreword for 'The Art of Community' (second edition)
Contributed the foreword to the second edition of Jono Bacon's 'The Art of Community' (published 2009).
TWiT hiring & team expansion (e.g., producers and hosts)
The network expanded staff & talent during the 2010s, hiring hosts and producers (staff recollections note hiring waves around 2010–2012).
TWiT expansion to new facilities (studio expansion)
TWiT expanded into new production facilities (wiki and company statements cite expansion around 2011).
IAWTV award (Tech News Today) at CES 2012
TWiT-produced Tech News Today received an IAWTV award for Best News Web Series at CES 2012 (team award referenced by staff recollections).
Reported TWiT revenue approaching US$4M
In a 2012 Reddit AMA Laporte stated TWiT's revenue was approaching US$4 million annually.
Public AMA (Reddit) discussing TWiT business metrics
Participated in a 2012 Reddit AMA where he publicly stated revenue metrics (approaching $4M), discussing business operations openly with listeners.
TWiT reach reported (network audiences)
TWiT network described on official site as reaching more than 6 million listeners and viewers each month (site-stated metric; year not precisely dated on page).
Married Lisa Laporte (Lisa Kentzell)
Married Lisa Laporte, who serves as CEO of TWiT and is a key partner in the business.
Third-party estimate of personal net worth ~US$5M
Several public profiles and business reporting in subsequent years estimate Laporte's net worth in the neighborhood of US$5 million (media compilations).
TWiT studio moves: Brick House -> Eastside studios (company transition)
TWiT moved from the Brick House production studio to a scaled-down 'Eastside' studio buildout (staff accounts; approximate period around late 2010s).
COVID-19: TWiT production moved remote, launched Club TWiT
During the COVID-19 pandemic, TWiT shifted many hosts to home studios; launched Club TWiT membership to get fan support and experiment with new formats.
Steve Martin call announced Leo's retirement from 'The Tech Guy'
Actor/comedian Steve Martin called into The Tech Guy on Nov 19, 2022 to announce Leo Laporte's retirement from the radio show.
Announcement of successor to radio slot (Rich DeMuro)
Rich DeMuro later appeared to announce he would take over in January with a weekly recorded show 'Rich On Tech' (announcement late Dec 2022).
Last new episode of 'The Tech Guy' (radio)
Leo's last new radio show aired December 18, 2022; reruns filled schedule for the remainder of the year.
Public net worth reporting (~US$5M)
Aggregate public profiles (news/biography sites) list Laporte's estimated net worth around US$5 million as of the mid-2020s.
TWiT network ongoing operations and studio base
TWiT continues to operate from Petaluma studios (official site) producing multiple shows such as This Week in Tech, Security Now!, MacBreak Weekly and others; site-stated monthly reach cited above.
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