Former President Trump takes aim at former CNN boss Jeff Zucker In a new book about his experience working on NBC’s “The Apprentice,” he calls his one-time colleague “human garbage.”
Author and Variety in the book “Apprentice in Wonderland” Co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh revisits the show that turned a New York real estate mogul into a reality TV star, which eventually helped him get into the White House.
Trump spoke candidly with Setoode about his complicated relationship with Zucker, which began when Zucker was president of NBC Entertainment, long before he joined CNN.
The book explains that when “The Apprentice” was first picked up by NBC, Trump was initially supposed to host only the first season, with new hosts being brought in each season. But because “The Apprentice” was a ratings hit, Trump was kept on board.
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According to “Apprentice in Wonderland,” Donald Trump was originally supposed to star in only the first season of “The Apprentice,” but was kept on after it became a ratings hit for NBC. (Bill Tompkins/Getty Images)
According to the book, things became sour between Trump and Zucker when negotiating the second season’s contract.
“Trump earned $25,000 per episode for the first season” Learner “It was outrageous,” Setoodeh wrote. Published in Vanity Fair on Tuesday. “It wasn’t that he needed the TV money to make a living, and the free advertising the Trump Organization would get from the series was probably better than any pay package. But it was a status thing: By Trump’s math, bigger is always better. Trump felt NBC had no choice but to multiply that number by a number so large that it would make him one of the richest men in entertainment.”
Trump noted how “The Apprentice” outperformed reruns of “Friends” that aired the same night and how the six stars of “Friends” earned $1 million per episode by the end of the show. But as Setoode writes, Trump didn’t ask for $1 million per episode. He asked for $6 million per episode instead.
,“There were six people on Friends,” Trump told Setoode. “They’re getting $1 million an episode. That’s $6 million. So if they’re getting $6 million, and my ratings are higher than theirs — because that’s the end of ‘Friends’,And they were fading away — I said, ‘You should pay me $6 million an episode.'”
This did not sit well with Zucker, who Setoode wrote was “deeply infuriated that Trump even considered asking for such an impractical salary.”
“They went crazy,” Trump recalled. “And they said, ‘We’re not going to do it. It’s over.'”
“Trump then made an offer of his own,” Setoode writes. While he began negotiations with a lofty number, his strategy was to leave the door open to see what NBC brought to the negotiating table. “I said, ‘That’s what we’re going to do. Give me anything less than six. If you’re paying Friend Six, and my rating is higher FriendYou should give me six! But give me something less than that. I’m smart!'”
Setoodeh wrote of Trump’s conversation with Zucker, “‘We’re not doing that,’ Zucker told him over the phone. ‘We already have someone else lined up.'”
Prior to their 2016 feud, Donald Trump and Jeff Zucker feuded with each other during their tenures at NBC. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Trump hosted the second season of “The Apprentice,” but not because Zucker agreed to pay $6 million per episode. Setoode reported that a large portion of the massive paycheck Trump received from NBC actually came from a deal he made with the show’s executive producer Mark Burnett, who agreed to split product placement revenue at a 50/50 ratio.
Years later, Zucker became CNN’s high-profile chairman and CEO, a credit Trump repeatedly took in his conversations with Setoodeh, who wrote in his book that “CNN insiders have denied that Trump had anything to do with Zucker’s hiring.”
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but when Trump launches first About his presidential campaign, Setoodeh wrote about how the candidate “often called his old boss for gossip and guidance” and how their warm friendship cooled as 2016 began.
“Trump and Zucker’s intertwined professional lives became a mimicry of the art they created together. Once inseparable in their shared quest for ratings, the two men — still seeking the highest possible numbers, whether viewership or electoral votes — found themselves feuding like reality TV contestants once Trump began winning primaries,” Setoodeh told readers.
He added, “This was no surprise to any observer familiar with the style. Zucker and Trump’s alliance worked for them when they both benefited. Using Trump as a free propaganda machine and encouraging his tendency to say whatever came into his mind worked to Zucker and NBC’s advantage. Yet in this new phase of Zucker’s career, Zucker could no longer protect Trump.”
“CNN’s coverage inevitably grew tougher as Trump got closer to the Republican nomination. And when the network began fact-checking his lies in real time, Trump felt Zucker had betrayed him.”
The long-term friendship between Jeff Zucker and Donald Trump grew stronger when CNN began covering the Republican candidate more negatively. (Getty Images)
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Recalling his conversation with Trump, Setoodeh writes that he quotes the former president as saying, “When I was running for office, I said, ‘CNN is going to treat me very well.’ That’s called loyalty. I got the guy a job. And when I was campaigning, people would come up and say, ‘Sir, CNN is giving you a little trouble!’ I would say, ‘That’s not possible. Go back and check.’ And I would call Jeff.” Trump mimics Zucker’s voice, and adds a sarcastic layer: ‘I’ll look into it. I’ll look into it.’ Trump says he finally lost patience and stopped talking to Zucker, because he realized Zucker was secretly reporting harshly about his campaign.”
In another excerpt, Setoode quotes Trump as saying, “’I’ve always said he can’t do anything wrong to me, and he did. Because a lot of people are dirty.’ Trump pauses, as if he’s about to fire someone. But the only power he has away from the Oval Office is the familiar intensity of his venomous contempt, now directed at Jeff Zucker. ‘He’s human garbage.’”
A spokesman for Zucker declined to comment. Fox News DigitalRequest for comment. Zucker declined to comment on Setoode.
