Mikhail Gusman is a prominent journalist, television presenter and media executive. He was born on 23 January 1950 in Baku into an intellectual family. He received his higher education at the Azerbaijan State Institute of Foreign Languages. For many years, he held senior positions at TASS, Russia’s state news agency, serving as its First Deputy Director General. He is also the creator and presenter of the acclaimed television programme "Formula of Power" ("Формула власти"), which features interviews with world leaders. Throughout his career, Mikhail Gusman has played a significant role in strengthening Russian-Azerbaijani relations and fostering cultural ties between the two countries.

His contributions have been recognised with numerous prestigious awards and honours from both Azerbaijan and Russia. He has been awarded Russia’s Order of Merit for the Fatherland (III and IV Classes), the Order of Alexander Nevsky, the Order of Honour and the Order of Friendship. He is a laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation and has been awarded the honorary titles of Honoured Journalist of the Russian Federation and Honoured Cultural Worker of the Russian Federation. For his contributions to expanding relations between the two countries, he was awarded the Azerbaijani Orders of Glory (2005), Friendship (2010) and Honour (2020) by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. He is also a recipient of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation’s Golden Plane Tree International Award. Recognised internationally, Gusman has received Italy’s highest state honour, the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. In addition, he has been presented with a special award for his contribution to strengthening friendly relations between Russia and Japan. In Türkiye, he received an International Media Award from the Global Journalists Council. His book "The Formula of Life: A Book About My Father and Mother" has also received a prestigious literary award in Russia.

On 27 May 2026, by a decision of the Academic Council of Azerbaijan University of Languages (AUL), Mikhail Gusman was awarded the title of Honorary Professor of AUL.