Many television fans and cryptocurrency investors have called out the mention of Bitcoin BTC/USD on television shows over the years. Here's a look back at what is believed to be the first mention of the leading cryptocurrency on a mainstream show.
The First Mainstream Mention: A 2012 episode of “The Good Wife” is credited as the first mainstream television mention of Bitcoin.
The episode called “Bitcoin for Dummies” aired on Jan. 15, 2012 on CBS, a unit of Paramount Global PARAPARAA.
“Alicia (Julianna Margulies) defends a man who claims to represent the person who created a new online currency against the Treasury Department,” the episode’s IMDB summary reads.
Jason Biggs guest starred as Dylan Stack in the episode.
In a scene in Alicia’s office, Dylan complains of how long it took at a bank to get a cashier’s check and change “dollar bills into another piece of paper.”
“I went online and I bought one Bitcoin last night,” Alicia answers back.
“It’s the future,” Dylan says.
“Doesn’t feel real,” Alicia says.
“Real’s gonna change, just watch,” Dylan.
At the time the episode aired, Bitcoin was trading at $3.41 according to Documenting Bitcoin on Twitter.
Many have praised the show, which aired on CBS from 2009 to 2016, for being ahead of the times and recognizing the power of Bitcoin and how it can be a competitor to traditional banking.
Related Link: If You Invested $1,000 In Bitcoin When It Launched, Here's How Much You'd Have Now
Bitcoin on TV: Since “The Good Wife,” Bitcoin has been mentioned on many other shows including a reference on an episode of “The Simpsons” in 2013 on Fox Corp FOX.
The season 2 finale of “Ted Lasso” featured a reference to Bitcoin from a character. Without spoiling the plot, the character mentions the universe always putting them on the right path, including purchasing Bitcoin in 2009.
Bitcoin traded at less than one cent per share in 2009, which would make the fictional television character potentially wealthy.
Other shows to mention Bitcoin include “Billions,” “Mr. Robot” and “Silicon Valley.”
“Jeopardy!” referred to Bitcoin with a question on the cryptocurrency in a 2013 episode.
Bitcoin has seen increased mentions over the years on television and in movies as the leading cryptocurrency has become more mainstream in use cases, retail transactions and overall conversation.
Some elements of this story were previously reported by Benzinga and it has been updated.
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