• USA Today, Thursday, June 5, 2008 10:30 AM

Warren Buffett is out talking to cable TV anchors, magazine writers, shareholders, Congress, foreign investors, and even to a former Wall Street analyst who is writing a book about him. He's generating newsy sound bites at press conferences. He's even popped up in a CNBC documentary, "The Billionaire Next Door: All Access," which delves into all things Buffett. Not to mention a recent guest appearance on the daytime soap opera "All My Children."

He's talking about pretty much anything. The question is, why? Buffett in the past has tended to share his thoughts only on specific occasions, such as his annual shareholder meeting, One of five reasons Buffet watchers give is that at Berkshire Hathaway, his legendary holding company, he is the brand. Buffett is committed to delivering value to his shareholders. Turning Berkshire, which is based in Middle America and has a U.S.-centric focus, into a global brand is a PR job only Buffett can do, says Andrew Kilpatrick, who wrote Of Permanent Value: The Story of Warren Buffett. "He is the international face of Berkshire - a walking advertisement," Kilpatrick says.

Read the whole story at USA Today »