History Main / KnowledgeBroker

* Sakaguchi Ango from ''Manga/BungoStrayDogs''. He is introduced as an important source of information for the mafia, and he's often doing business abroad. That's what we're told... [[spoiler: but he is actually doing this work for the Government; he plays an important role there as well]]. Taken UpToEleven when [[spoiler: Atsushi, Kyouka and Oguri escape using the latter's Ability (to erase every trace of a crime) and they're still found by Ango. That's before it is revealed that Ango has the power to [[{{Psychometry}} receive the memories of everything he touches]]]], which finally answers why he is this trope.

* In ''Film/StarWarsAttackOfTheClones'', there was Dex, the owner and chef of Dex's Diner. Seeing as his place was popular with merchants, smugglers, and other frequent travelers, and how he's traveled all over and done more jobs than can be counted on his four hands, he often overheard things that no-one else did, and was willing to sell the info. In the movie, Obi-Wan goes to him to find information on the Kamino cloning project; he identifies the reclusive race whose world is so obscure that nobody noticed it being missing from the Jedi archives from a simple metal dart.

* In ''VideoGame/YandereSimulator'', Info-chan. She's technically a student at Akademi High School, but she spends all her time in the locked Info Club room, and can only be contacted electronically. She knows a lot about everyone at school; she got her position and privileges by blackmailing the school's headmaster, and she has enough dirt to destroy the reputation of most of the school's students. She also doubles as a black market dealer, as she can get helpful items like cigarettes, fake [=IDs=], and poison for the right price. The price is measured in panty shots (or, later on, gossip from planted bugs), which she accepts because some students will pay her for them. In game, she acts as a MysteriousBacker to Yan-chan, knowing her true nature and intentions but not caring as long as it gets her business. She'll give out general information on the students for free; more direct aid will require payment.

* In ''VideoGame/YandereSimulator'', Info-chan. She's technically a student at Akademi High School, but she spends all her time in the locked Info Club room, and can only be contacted electronically. She knows a lot about everyone at school; she got her position and privileges by blackmailing the school's headmaster, and she has enough dirt to destroy the reputation of most of the school's students. She also doubles as a black market dealer, as she can get helpful items like cigarettes, fake [=IDs=], and poison for the right price. The price is measured in [[PantyShot panty shots]] (or, later on, gossip from planted bugs), which she accepts because some students will pay her for them. In game, she acts as a MysteriousBacker to Yan-chan, knowing her true nature and intentions but not caring as long as it gets her business. She'll give out general information on the students for free; more direct aid will require payment.

Sometimes the source of information is more upscale in appearance, in which case they are probably also TheBarnum. They usually want something from the hero before they hand out the information (unless they owe the Hero a favor, or have a crush on him). Often they'll want nothing more than cash, but sometimes they want the Hero to run an [[FetchQuest errand]] for them. Or they may trade information for information. If there is romantic subtext, she might ask the Hero to be her escort somewhere -- always a good choice for drama when the hero is looking for information about the kidnapping of his [[LoveInterests love interest]]. Obviously saving his true love justifies cheating on his true love -- or does it?

** ComicBook/{{Oracle}} started out fulfilling this role for Franchise/{{Batman}}, then moved on to also providing it for ''ComicBook/BirdsOfPrey'', then moved onto being a uniting force for ''the entire hero community.'' People both in and out of universe have mused that Oracle is one of the most invalueable heroes when it comes to fighting crime.

* The Shingouz in ''ComicBook/{{Valerian}}'' are [[PlanetOfHats an entire race of creatures]] who specialise in spying and information trade. A trio of them often push their services on Valerian and Laureline and end up getting them involved into the main plot of the ongoing issue.

** Doctor Strange is the ultimate example of this, overlapping with MisterExposition when he's feeling helpful. He knows almost everything you could possibly want to know, and has dirt on everyone. It helps that he's exceptionally stealthy, and an immensely powerful {{Seer|s}} and [[TimeMaster time-traveller]]. He also never lies, which helps with trust... or it would, if he wasn't a master TruthTwister. Plus, he dispenses information on his schedule and no one else's.

** In the second game, Liara starts her own business on Illium, but for her the profits are mostly to fund her own investigations into the identity and location of the Shadow Broker, who tried to find the dead body of Shepard and sell it to the Collectors and kidnapped her partner when she gave the body to Cerberus first. Her real goal is to kill the Shadow Broker and rescue Feron. [[TookALevelInBadass Not bad for the socially awkward archeologist from the first game.]]

* In ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5DuwoHpEa4 I Will: The Story of London]]'' for the Pioneer Laseractive, the man to see was Mr. Pound AKA "Antenna", who runs a Britain-wide information network. He's easily recognised as he's the only person in the entire game who carries two umbrellas in one hand.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}''. Having good contacts is key to survival if you don't wanna die or get arrested by Lone Star. Your contacts come in various ranks, which vary depending on the edition.

[[quoteright:350:[[VideoGame/MassEffect2 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/LiaraShadowBroker_7705.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"Give me ten minutes, and I could start a war."]]

** Carol is a downplayed example, often accepting information as part of a ProBonoBarter when [[TheOldestProfession her clients]] can’t pay her fully or when she wants the info more.
** Viola has a career as this (with relic appraisal as her front). With Viola’s ChronicBackstabbingDisorder, she often uses it for PlayingBothSides, as well as FlawExploitation based gambits (usually both at the same time).

* [[http://amazingplasmaman.com/comics/62 Ace Tanager]] from ''Webcomic/TheIncredibleAndAweInspiringSerialAdventureOfTheAmazingPlasmaMan'' holds a wealth of information about the citizens of Meridian City, which he gladly shares with Plasma-Man in exchange for patronage of his lounge.

** ComicBook/{{Oracle}} usually fills this role for Franchise/{{Batman}}.

* This seems to be the in-story role of [[BadassInANiceSuit Sai]] in VideoGame/AkatsukiBlitzkampf. He is said to be a person who, through illegal means, gathers all the information in the world. [[spoiler: Though it looks like he might actually be an undercover agent for the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secret_Intelligence_Service MI6.]]]]

* Ginko from ''LightNovel/KureNai'', for the romantic subtext version. Also Shinkurou's UnluckyChildhoodFriend.
* Nabiki Tendo of ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf''.

* Haruo Nijima from ''Manga/KenichiTheMightiestDisciple'' is a partial case of this. Though he has incredibly skills in analyzing enemies and information gathering in general, he acquires all his intelligence for the sole purpose of furthering his own goals of power.

* Hiruma of ''Manga/Eyeshield21''. Like Nijima he uses it for his own gains and specializes in blackmail with it.
* In ''Manga/FinalFantasyLostStranger'', Grede Treid deals in only the latest and best information, becoming fabulously wealthy for it. His services are so valued that he and his clerks can easily charge 600 million Gil for information without blinking, an impossible price for most to pay. And yet, his word is so valued that the fact that he's willing to put a price on information about [[spoiler:Raise only bolsters Shogo's hopes that it exists and that he'll be able to use it to revive Yuko.]]

* A [[TimeSkip series]] of [[NoNameGiven unnamed women]] in ''Anime/{{Mnemosyne}}'', who [[TrademarkFavoriteFood drink Grasshoppers]] and take sex as payment (yeah, it's that kind of show).
* ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'': Izaya Orihara, though it's hard to tell whether he's [[OnlyInItForTheMoney doing it for the money]] or simply because [[ItAmusedMe It Amuses Him]]. Considering his intelligence and [[{{Jerkass}} his]] [[ManipulativeBastard personality]], it's probably the latter with the former as a perk.
-->'''Izaya:''' It's kinda scary how much people trust me.
* [[{{Meganekko}} Becky]] [[MiserAdvisor Farrah]] from ''Manga/GunsmithCats''.
* ''Manga/BlackButler'' has the Undertaker. He's just in it for the laughs.
* ''Anime/GunXSword'' has [=Carmen99=].
* [[spoiler: Madeleine]] in the manga of ''Manga/HonooNoAlpenRose''.
* Sonica of ''Manga/MagicalRecordLyricalNanohaForce'', who is a genuine palm reader who could read a person's memories and biological data by touching her target. This, combined with her personality and the fact that everyone in the underworld goes to her when they need to interrogate someone, means she's got the dirt on everybody. Like most Knowledge Brokers, she's in it for the money so the price of her info is always very steep, and she has plenty of blackmail material for those unwilling to pay.

* In ''Manga/TegamiBachiLetterBee'', Largo, master of the Bee Hive, visits one such knowledge broker in a tobacco shop. He buys various bits of information while disguising his requests as cigarette purchases.

** The Calculator from Franchise/TheDCU was a goofy Silver Age villain with a giant pocket calculator on his chest and vague AwesomenessByAnalysis powers - until ''ComicBook/IdentityCrisis'' revamped him into Oracle's EvilCounterpart, a knowledge broker for supervillains. In Videogame/DCUniverseOnline, the two serve the role as MissionControl for heroes and villains respectively using their know-how.

* In the ''ComicBook/AstroCity'' story, "The Tarnished Angel," Donnelly Ferguson uses his knowledge of the city's underworld to find jobs for the B-rate villains of Kiefer Square. [[spoiler:He arranges for all of them to be hired for a city-wide crime spree planned by fallen hero El Hombre, who plans to kill all the villains and restore his heroic stature.]] Steeljack didn't like associating with him even before all this came to light, but because Ferguson didn't have a record he was one of the very few people he knew with whom he could freely mingle without violating his parole. He never gets what's coming to him, but he's not the same man after the Conquistador incident, either.
* The Harlot functions as this in ''ComicBook/FallOfCthulhu.'' As one of the most powerful entities in the DreamLand, she can provide virtually any form of information; her asking price is generally a piece of the client's body, [[spoiler: though she will occasionally accept pieces of the client's mind -- especially in the case of Raymond Dirk.]]
* Max Normal in early ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'' comics.
* ''Series/{{Angel}}'' had a creature, Polyphemus, with an encyclopedic knowledge of demonology. There was some romantic subtext between him and Laura, a former watcher.

* Feetus from ''ComicBook/{{Grimjack}}''. Notable in that he and Grimjack were old war buddies and genuine friends. He plays a more important role in the plot than just a source of information for Grimjack.

** Ivan Petrovich, a former Red Room Agent who served as a ParentalSubstitute to Natasha and joined her in defecting. Natasha inwardly considers him to be one of the best intel analysts on the planet and in chapter 67, both the Red Room and HYDRA make a play for him. [[spoiler: Both are foiled by the Winter Soldier, who is nominally working for HYDRA, and manages to help Petrovich fake his death.]]

* ''Fanfic/DungeonKeeperAmi'' features Keeper Midori, who fits this Trope to a T. She keeps close tabs on all the warring factions in the story, often popping up at opportune moments- such as lulls in the fighting -to offer information on their enemies, at a price.

* In ''Film/{{Heat}}'' (1995) Robert [=DeNiro's=] character consults such a figure for intelligence on potential heists and police opponents. When [=DeNiro=] asks him where he gets this stuff he replies that it just comes to him through the air (his house is festooned with antennae and located on a hill above Los Angeles).

* Skinny Pete from the 2003 remake of ''Film/{{The Italian Job|2003}}'' acts as this for Charlie and his crew when they pull their final heist in L. A.
* From the ''Film/LethalWeapon'' series, Leo Getz. [[CatchPhrase "Whatever you need, Leo Gets".]] (Unfortunately, he tends to '''get''' [[ButtMonkey himself in trouble a lot.]])
* In ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', there was Dex, the owner and chef of Dex's Diner. Seeing as his place was popular with merchants, smugglers, and other frequent travelers, and how he's traveled all over and done more jobs than can be counted on his four hands, he often overheard things that no-one else did, and was willing to sell the info. In the movie, Obi-Wan goes to him to find information on the Kamino cloning project; he identifies the reclusive race whose world is so obscure that nobody noticed it being missing from the Jedi archives from a simple metal dart.
* ''Film/AIArtificialIntelligence'': Doctor Know... is in the know. And is also an unreliable search engine that charges per-question, but that's besides the point.
* ''Film/XMenApocalypse'': Caliban is a broker and informant on mutant goings-on.
* Mr. Universe for the series ''Series/{{Firefly}}'''s BigDamnMovie ''Film/{{Serenity}}'', the self proclaimed "eyes and ears of the 'verse."
* ''Film/WelcomeToThePunch'' (2013). A criminal seeking to put out some information on the street as TheBait visits a tattoo parlour whose owner gives him the option of releasing the information "old school" (word of mouth) or "new school" (via Facebook and Twitter).

* ''Film/GleahanAndTheKnavesOfIndustry:'' Madison, the bartender.
-->'''Madison:''' With all the stuff I hear, you could incriminate half of Duluth.

* Jasper from ''Literature/SuperMinion''. He might not be quite as smart as he claims and he might overcharge, but the information he provides is frequently spot on.

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'':
** Varys "The Spider" is the Lord of Whispers for the Seven Kingsoms. Having no title or wealth (being referred to as Lord out of courtesy), and being a foreign eunuch, he only managed to survive the overthrow of the Targaryen dynasty because of his usefulness. However Varys has his own agenda so uses his position to manipulate others; for instance playing Cersei and Tyrion against each other, or passing off Daenerys Targaryen's dragons as just another ridiculous rumor.
** Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish is an extremely minor lord and an unabashed schemer who knows everyone's dirt. Turns out that owning several high-end brothels frequented by powerful nobles and merchants has other benefits beyond the obvious.
** Qyburn, a former maester, becomes Lord of Whispers under Cersei's direction and claims that the job is easier than you'd think, because there are always people who will seek you out to sell secrets.

* Chrysalis, the transparent-skinned owner of the Crystal Palace bar in the Literature/WildCards universe, uses a telepathic bartender and tiny spy-creatures spawned by a unique Joker to gather information-- along with the traditional bribes and espionage.
* The sheer scale of the ''Franchise/StarWars'' universe dictates a rather absurd number of these. By ''far'' the best, though, is smuggler-in-chief [[Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy Talon Karrde]], whose organization, which took over after Jabba The Hutt's enterprises collapsed with his death, was built on information brokering. He ended up [[DefaultToGood defaulting to the New Republic's side]] [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal after]] Thrawn had him kidnapped to try and coax the location of a lost fleet out of him. In the Literature/HandOfThrawn duology, he took a certain crucial bit of intelligence to Supreme Commander Pellaeon in time for a BigDamnHeroes moment, and his organization sets up between the newly at peace New Republic and Imperial Remnant, making sure information flows freely to both sides so there won't be any nasty secrets. His old mentor knows everything, but withdrew from galactic affairs.
** Around second place or so are the various other important smugglers, and government agents are somewhere around twentieth. Unless they're ''Thrawn's'' agents, that is, or wherever and whatever he gets his intel from.
* Pahvulti, the renegade [[{{Cyborg}} Tech]] [[MachineWorship Priest]] in Simon Spurrier's TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}} Literature/NightLords novel ''Lord of the Night''. He was exceptionally good at his job, becoming the information baron of a hive, due to his mentality of a cad combined with his thought processes being that of a computer.
* AmoralAttorney Kodringer in ''Literature/TheWitcher''
* Charles Augustus Milverton of the ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' tale that bears his name. He uses the information he receives to blackmail people and sometimes even ruin them just ForTheEvulz.
* After refusing to back down from a touchy case and losing her position, [[spoiler: Wolfe]] from the Creator/AndrewVachss Burke books takes on this role, and is apparently the best at it.
* "Done it" Duncan of the Literature/{{Discworld}} acts unwillingly as this, as he claims to have performed every crime that happens in the city, including a SuspiciouslySpecificDenial that can be very useful to the Watch.
** Also, Fred Colon from ''Night Watch'' forward, in a strange way. After being pulled off the streets, he is given an office, where he always keeps a kettle going and a box of free doughnuts. This is a favourite hang-out for ex-cops, old cons and petty criminals, all of whom have an ear to the street and gossip like old washerwomen. Colon hands over the information gathered to Vimes, who gladly pays for the tea and doughnuts in return.

* The [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles]] from Creator/TadWilliams's ''Literature/WarOfTheFlowers''.
* The former CIA from ''Literature/SnowCrash'' is a knowledge-brokering company. Among other things it employs camera-laden guys who roam around recording everything, in case it'll come in handy later.
* Gyoko from ''Literature/{{Shogun}}'' seems to know everything, and has a network of courtesans who supply her with information. In a society that values titles and military power, she manages to do much with the use of information only.

* Magician Humphrey from the ''Literature/{{Xanth}}'' series is not ranked as a magician for being born with powerful magic, but rather for his ability to find information. He can answer any question, but because so many people have questions, they have to get past three obstacles to get to him and work for him for a year or provide some other kind of significant service for him in return. This way, only ''serious'' Questions come to him to keep things sane.
* This is the [[PlanetOfHats Hat]] of the Agletsch, a ProudMerchantRace in the ''Literature/StarCarrier'' series. Any given inhabited star system has resources aplenty to manufacture goods, so instead the Agletsch buy and sell everything from intelligence to schematics and technical data, and even art.
* In Lawrence Block's Literature/MatthewScudder series, Danny Boy Bell, an albino black man, performs this role. A website providing information about the book series, [[http://pooganspub.com/ Poogan's Pub]], is named after one of the spots Bell frequents.
* In ''Literature/TanteiTeamKZJikenNote'', [[TheSocialExpert Kuroki's epithet]] doesn't only refer to his social skills, but also refers to his large social network which allows him to obtain information about ''everyone'' in the neighbourhood. Probably because this work is aimed at children, unlike most examples of this trope he's a recurring member of TheTeam and is seen to be morally upright.
* In ''Literature/TheIronTeeth'' web serial, the mysterious and beautiful woman Luphera aids Blacknail the hobgoblin by trading him information. She also appears to sell information, among other things.
* ''Literature/{{Edgedancer}}'' (a novella of ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive''): Nigh-everyone in Yeddaw buys and sells information, as in their country, knowledge is a currency as good as - and sometimes better than - physical money.
* The archivist Korobeinikov in ''Literature/TheTwelveChairs'' was a low-key version of a knowledge broker: he made money by selling decommisionned archive documents with sensitive information (such as the data on Bolshevik confiscations of property during the revolution that Ostap Bender wanted).
* In ''Literature/TheSpiritThief'', the brokers are a network of people famous for being able to find anything and any piece of information (they're a bit worse with people) within an hour or so of placing a query. They charge through the roof, but given their almost-supernatural ([[spoiler:actually supernatural, as they're in league with wind spirits]]) capabilities, the main characters agree that they're worth every standard.

* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'': There is one common theme between many powerhouses in the ''Dresden''-world: Knowledge is power. The strongest know this and give their knowledge with a price, if at all.
** The Fae, especially higher level Sidhe members, love being this. Any fae could have the information the mortal seeks, but the mortal must make exactly clear what information the mortal wants. Any loophole or ambiguity, and the fae can, and most will, give muddled and broken information. The fae will also ask for a payment in return of equal value to the knowledge given.
** Donnar Vadderung is the modern day mask of [[spoiler:Odin, the King of Norse Gods, and Santa Claus, Winter King and beholden to Queen Mab]]. He runs a mercenary group but is always well informed. He knows things about the hero Harry Dresden that not even Harry knew until just a days prior, namely: [[spoiler:Harry has a daughter and she was kidnapped by vampires. He also knows the vampires didn't kidnap her just for vengeance against Harry]]. Like the fae, he is willing to trade information for information, but there are two times when he asks no payment from Harry. The first is when [[spoiler:Harry came asking for help finding his daughter and saving her. Odin gives the knowledge freely, but Harry realizes later Odin, Mab, and others played him to help do serious damage to the Vampire Court that took his daughter by using his quest to their needs]]. Later on when Harry asks for more information in a different book [[spoiler:as Santa he gives Harry crucial information in outgambitting another Spymaster and his human ally, but states Harry was a good boy this past year and to consider it a belated Christmas present]].
** The Archive is the repository of all human knowledge. Anything written, typed, or printed, whether on stone, sand, paper, or computer, or other medium by other means, is instantly entered into her mind. The mantle is past from mother to daughter since Ancient Greece. She can recall anything her predecessors knew with perfect clarity too. She is ''not'' a broker of knowledge. She is neutral in all venues and the mantle of the Archive even restricts the female host from giving it, even if the person is a friend on a good cause. She is there in case of a societal collapse and lose of knowledge.
* ''Literature/TheLostRedeemer'': Casella Raider and Marabella Lawguard both fit this role. Each woman runs a spy network and always seems to know what the other characters are up to.
* ''Literature/MindstarRising'' by Creator/PeterFHamilton. Greg Mandel visits a knowledge broker and does an InterrogationByVandalism, destroying a [[BigBrotherIsWatchingYou database containing seven million personnel files]]. It's actually a vital clue that he misses; the only person who would have the opportunity to copy such a database would be a [[TheRemnant high-ranking official in the recently-deposed dictatorship]].
* In ''Literature/{{Bounders}}'', the Alkalinians, snake-like aliens, have a reputation for selling other species' secrets and technology on the black market.

* ''Series/TheLongestDayInChangAn'': Ge Lao collects information and sells it to people willing to pay enough for it.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': This is Varys' job as Master of Whisperers, and he's terrifyingly good at it. If, for whatever reason, a character does not go to Varys, they go to Littlefinger.
* "Ice Pick" from ''Series/MagnumPI''. Definitely of the "dubious morality" sort.
* Arvin Sloane from ''Series/{{Alias}}'' fulfilled the role for a season, when he wasn't being the BigBad.
* ''Series/StarskyAndHutch'' were always going to Huggy Bear for the "word on the street" He's a [[PimpDuds sartorially resplendent]] [[JiveTurkey urban patois-fluent]] [[SoulBrotha streetwise African-American]].

* Parodied in the shape of Johnny the Snitch on ''Series/PoliceSquad!'', the shoeshine guy who could give you information on absolutely ''everything'' -- at a price -- whether you're a cop looking for a fugitive, a surgeon needing advice on how to perform an operation, or [[http://www.poetv.com/video.php?vid=11645 just Dick Clark asking about musical trends (and youth cream)...]]

** The final two episodes of season one center on a Knowledge Broker who had files on hundreds of people and sold that information to whoever paid more.
** Hetty Lange, who's firmly on the side of the good guys--she seems to have limitless knowledge of ''everything'' that goes on not just in her unit, but pretty much all over the planet. Hetty has a massive database of contacts and connections from her days in the Cold War, and is fluent in at least eleven languages. She even lampshades the role in one episode when she's accused of being TheChessmaster; Hetty demurs and explains that she doesn't see individual pieces--she sees, and moves, the ''whole board.''

* Philip from ''Series/KamenRiderDouble'' has all of Earth's knowledge in his head.
* Limehouse from ''Series/{{Justified}}'' has an extensive network of informants throughout Harlan County and the neighboring areas. If you are a client of his unofficial bank, he will share the information if you ask nicely. He is a leader of a black community in the mountains of Kentucky and his community survived since the Civil War by always knowing what its enemies and allies were up to and where the next threat was coming from. He also helps shelter battered women fleeing their abusive partners, which definitely endears him somewhat to Marshall Raylan Givens despite the distinctly shady nature of Limehouse's business.
* JK from ''Series/KamenRiderFourze'' has information on every student in the school and it's his ''first-year'' in Amanogawa High.

* Trick from ''Series/LostGirl''. Part of it comes from being the owner of a bar that's one of the few places open to both Light and Dark Fae, part of it from [[spoiler: having once been the Blood King]].
* Dorium Maldovar, owner of the Maldovarium, who knows -- among MANY other things -- [[spoiler: what is The Question]] in ''Series/DoctorWho''.
* ''Series/BreakingBad'': The AmoralAttorney Saul Goodman also has a network of connections for virtually any criminal enterprise. Whether you need help cleaning up a crime scene after [[spoiler: your girlfriend dies of overdose]], need an expert conman [[spoiler: to impersonate a water inspector]], or simply need a buyer for your large quantities of illicit drugs, Saul either knows who can get the job done, or he [[KnowsAGuyWhoKnowsAGuy knows who knows them]]. [[KitschyLocalCommercial Better call Saul]]!
* The mysterious hacker group Everyone from ''Series/{{Elementary}}'' serves as this; while they initially serve as antagonists in an episode, they later befriend Sherlock and Joan, providing helpful information on cases in exchange for odd favors. [[spoiler:Joan calls on a few members of Everyone to serve as eyewitnesses (via Skype-like video services) to a villain threatening her and [[EngineeredPublicConfession describing his latest scheme.]]]]
* Antique book dealer Felix Muholland fills this role in ''Series/{{Banacek}}''; tracking down whatever esoteric piece of information Banacek needs to crack a particular. Interestingly, he is the only character who ever refers to Banacek by his first name.
* The villainous [[FatBastard Dale "the Whale" Biederbeck]] of ''Series/{{Monk}}'' is one of these (it helps that he's also [[Fiction500 insanely rich]]). In his debut episode, it's revealed that he has dirt on everyone from politicians to professional baseball coaches, and can make them obey him with a single phone call; later, he somehow manages to learn about some shameful parts of Sharona's past within a day or two of her meeting him. In a later episode, he forms an EnemyMine pact with Monk by offering information on Trudy's death that even the cops never discovered in exchange for Monk's clearing him of a murder. What makes this particularly impressive is that Dale weighs in at 800 pounds, and thus runs his information empire from a specially-made bed.
* A lighthearted version (that borders on TheFamilyForTheWholeFamily) appears in Disney Channel's ''Series/{{Jessie}}''. Recurring character Tony, the doorman of the high-rise where the show takes place, is apparently the best-connected person in all of New York. Whenever the main characters need [[NoodleImplements strange objects]] for some ZanyScheme, it's a safe bet that "Tony knows a guy" who can get them.

* Jonathan Patches of ''Roleplay/TheGunganCouncil'' can get information on ''anything'' as well as make sure no one gets certain information one doesn't want to let out.

* ''TabletopGame/MageTheAscension'': Also, every mage, to a certain extent, though the Mysterium are the ones with the main focus on it. One {{Sourcebook}} provides detailed information on how their "knowledge economy" works.

* From ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'', we have [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast The Pillar of Skulls,]] a hideous landmark upon [[FireAndBrimstoneHell Baator]]. Composed of the heads of various beings, it can access their knowledge to answer many questions... but it won't be free. The Pillar will ask for sacrifice to be made as payment, but sometimes it will take valuable information it has not already known as well. Notably, the Pillar is not omniscient, asking a question it doesn't know the answer to will not levy any payment.
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' has the Keeper of Secrets, the Greater Daemon of Slaanesh that knows every one of your dirty little secrets. It actively uses this information in combat to hamper you, ranging from bribing you with your heart's desires to revealing something that shatters its victim's minds.

* Johnnypateenmike in ''The Cripple of Inishmaan'' by Creator/MartinMcDonagh-- his "choice pieces of information" range from YetAnotherBabyPanda to [[GossipyHens everyone else's secrets]], and he barters them for food and other products from local merchants in their small town.

* ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVIII'' has a guy like this named Brains.
* In ''VideoGame/DragonQuestXI'' there is "Noah the Know-It-All", who often "overhears" juicy info and then passes it on further for a price. Saving him from capture by a monster, he repays the favor by revealing to the Hero the location of an item that would lead him to the WorldTree.
* Jules in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII''. Due to the way Archadian high society works, everyone in Archades is a Knowledge Broker to one degree or another.
* The Oracle in ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' is an AI [[InstantAIJustAddWater born in cyberspace from the sheer information in it]], who trades what he knows for information he does not have (this doesn't have to be of any value, a "joke you heard recently" and your breakfast are both things he requests in exchange for information). However the Oracle only appears at three points in the game, all in emails that are entirely optional to read, and everything we know about him is WordOfGod.
** This is a reference to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usenet_oracle Usenet Oracle.]]

* ASCII in ''VideoGame/BurnCycle'', a mysterious entity that resides in the [[{{Cyberspace}} Televerse]] and speaks in rapid MachineMonotone, with kiosks in the real world offering their location in exchange for [[WeWillUseCreditsInTheFuture credits]]. They become Sol Cutter's main source of intel for most of the game, sometimes giving out software to help Cutter.
* Everyone you talk to in ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes''. Seriously, how does Joe Shmoe know which warehouse the Trolls are selling firearms out of? Granted, many of your contacts have some relation to law enforcement or the criminal underworld, but it gets quite silly after a while. It becomes ''ridiculously'' literal in Praetoria, where the game's primary currency is labelled ''Information''. This hat will cost 30 informations sir.
* Jay the Unseen in ''VideoGame/TalesOfLegendia''.
* Wiseman from the ''VideoGame/DotHackR1Games'' had this as his initial occupation, before joining the team for real.

* In ''VideoGame/YandereSimulator'', Info-chan. She's technically a student at Akademi High School, but she spends all her time in the locked Info Club room, and can only be contacted electronically. She knows a lot about everyone at school; she got her position and privileges by blackmailing the school's headmaster, and she has enough dirt to destroy the reputation of most of the school's students. She also doubles as a black market dealer, as she can get helpful items like cigarettes, fake [=IDs=], and poison for the right price. The price is measured in [[PantyShot panty shots]] (or, later on, gossip from planted bugs), which she accepts because some students will pay her for them. In game, she acts as a MysteriousBacker to Yan-chan, knowing her true nature and intentions but not caring as long as it gets her business. She'll give out general information on the students for free; more direct aid will require payment.
* In ''[[VideoGame/WingCommander Privateer]]'' Roman Lynch provides information to the protagonist to aid his quest in finding out about the mysterious artifact he's acquired, at the expense of performing missions for him.
* ComicBook/TheRiddler is depicted this way in the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamSeries''.
* This seems to be the in-story role of [[BadassInANiceSuit Sai]] in VideoGame/AkatsukiBlitzkampf. He is said to be a person who, through illegal means, gathers all the information in the world. [[spoiler: Though it looks like he might actually be an undercover agent for the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secret_Intelligence_Service MI6.]]]]

* Varric does this when not writing or adventuring in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII''. This is all done in place of what should in theory be his actual job, namely running a business, which is in fact registered to a totally fictitious cousin.
-->'''Varric:''' It means coins flow when I talk ''and'' when I shut up.
* ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'':
** The rumormongers in ''VideoGame/Persona2'' inform you of, among other things, shops that secretly sell weapons/armor and those shop's prices, or of demons existing or knowing specific skills. For a fee, Detective Todoroki spreads those rumors and makes them come true.
** In ''VideoGame/Persona5'', Yuuki Mishima runs the Phantom Aficionado Website (or Phan-site), which among other things is the source for most of the game's sidequests.

* ''VideoGame/{{Anachronox}}'' has several mentioned or implied, but two stand out: K'Conrad Khk and Eddie the Chew. The former is merely an Aewa (a flying species) who takes advantage of the planet's subjective approach to gravity and the tendency for people to not look up very often, in order to find juicy info. He's also a literal broker, as he likes to trade secrets for other secrets. The latter is far more complex; Eddie is hyperintelligent and appears to for all intents and purposes absorb ''all'' info on the whole planet, but needs to process it properly in his mind in order to produce proper, cohesive data. (Chewing on stinky, chewy things seems to help him focus; petitioners have to bring him something that fits the bill as payment.)
* In ''VideoGame/StarTradersFrontiers'' you can find Intel (usually by [[SpiesInAVan Spying in the orbit of a system]], but there are other sources) that relates to ongoing conflicts, or simply relating to a specific faction. Some Contacts (such as [[TheSpymaster Spymasters]]) will buy Intel, although it's worth more in improving your [[AllianceMeter Personal Rep]] with, and increasing the Influence of, the buying Contact.

* Landon from ''Webcomic/ThisIsNotFiction'' is introduced as one, being the self-titled "Godfather of Highschool".
* ''Webcomic/PlanescapeSurvivalGuide'' has the [[http://planescapecomic.com/7.html "info imp,"]] not that he is particularly helpful.

* Geezy the Pegelount is one of these in the WretchedHive of Tortuna in ''[[WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGalaxyRangers Galaxy Rangers]]''. A later episode reveals that his cousin is one of Her Majesty's victims (explaining why he's no fan of hers). {{Fanon}} also suspects Doc was one of these before being "reluctantly" recruited into the Rangers.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' short "China Jones", Daffy seeks info from one called Limey Louie. Unfortunately, this is a ruse by Louie himself, who bears a grudge against Daffy for sending him to jail.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hilda}}'': The RatKing of Trollburg knows all secrets overheard by the city's rat population and is willing to trade them for new secrets, or sometimes for a rancid cod sandwich from the dumpster behind this one restaurant by the docks, they like those.

The Knowledge Broker has a web of contacts stretching into various organizations, industries, and government agencies, and always seems to know what's going on. Sometimes the Knowledge Broker seem nearly omniscient. They always seem to have just the right tidbit of information for whoever is willing to pay their price. For the most part, he remains impartial despite his vast influence, and most people know to stay on his good (or at least indifferent) side.

The Knowledge Broker has a web of contacts stretching into various organizations, industries, and government agencies, and always seems to know what's going on. Sometimes the Knowledge Broker seem nearly omniscient. He/she always seems to have just the right tidbit of information for whoever is willing to pay their price. For the most part, he remains impartial despite his vast influence, and most people know to stay on his good (or at least indifferent) side.

* In ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/14997911/chapters/34874444 The Horsewomen Of Las Vegas]]'', Wrestling/DanaBrooke is this for crime boss Wrestling/CharlotteFlair. She's Charlotte's personal assistant, but she also spends a lot of her salary making contacts with other parts of the criminal underworld. She hypothesized that Wrestling/TheBellaTwins were responsible for the murder of Wrestling/TheGodather which kicked off the story, even when the police didn't have any idea who it was.
** To a lesser extent, one of Wrestling/BeckyLynch's CoDragons, Wrestling/{{ODB}}, whose specialty is finding people who are hard-to-find.

* ''Fanfic/ChasingDragons'' has the mysterious figure known as the Kindly Man, who controls the criminal underworld in Myr by trading in information. [[spoiler: It's very strongly implied that he's Varys.]]

* ''Fanfic/AGamerInSouthBlue'': Bill, the bartender of ''The Cracked Pearl'' in Caeba Kingdom, works as this, and he makes it clear at the outset that he doesn't pick any sides: he gives information to whoever can pay for it. This despite the fact that Jack's [Gamer] abilities inform him immediately that Bill is an undercover agent of CP5; this is just a side job while he accomplishes whatever his true objective is.

* ''Mindstar Rising'' by Creator/PeterFHamilton. Greg Mandel visits a knowledge broker and does an InterrogationByVandalism, destroying a [[BigBrotherIsWatchingYou database containing seven million personnel files]]. It's actually a vital clue that he misses; the only person who would have the opportunity to copy such a database would be a [[TheRemnant high-ranking official in the recently-deposed dictatorship]].

** Varys "The Spider" is the Lord of Whispers for the Seven Kingsoms. Having no title or wealth (being referred to as Lord out of courtesy), and being a foreign eunuch, he only managed to survive the overthrow of the Targaryen dynasty because of his usefulness.

** Doctor Strange is the ultimate example of this, overlapping with MisterExposition when he's feeling helpful. He knows almost everything you could possibly want to know, and has dirt on everyone. It helps that he's exceptionally stealthy, and an immensely powerful {{Seer}} and [[TimeMaster time-traveller]]. He also never lies, which helps with trust... or it would, if he wasn't a master TruthTwister. Plus, he dispenses information on his schedule and no one else's.

** The most prominent one is the Florist, who has cameras covering most of Tokyo and works for the highest bidder. He got his name because when he was starting out, he always delivered his intel on cards attached to flower arrangements.

** Yakuza Like a Dragon features the Geomijul, a Korean crime syndicate that gathers intel through its extensive surveillance network in Ijincho and both sells it and uses it to keep the peace between the other criminal factions.