In her newly released book, “Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America," author Maggie Haberman recalls how the reality TV show “The Apprentice” helped shape the way voters saw former President Donald Trump.
What Happened: Haberman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and a White House correspondent for The New York Times, talked to a middle-aged male voter in 2016 who said they were voting for Trump because they “watched him run his business.”
There could not have been a President Trump without “The Apprentice,” Haberman told Deadline, adding: "[Trump] was playing this character that was created by [his book] 'The Art of the Deal'... that was how the public interpreted him."
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Haberman believes Trump may have come close to being president without the help of the show, but his 2016 election victory would not have happened had "The Apprentice" not been a hit.
"I don’t think he would’ve been the president without The Apprentice. I asked him that question in one of our interviews, and he didn’t … if memory serves, he didn’t take an opinion on it. But I just don’t see how it would’ve happened, based on my interviews with people," Haberman said. "There is almost no doubt in my mind.”
Haberman also credits “The Apprentice” producer and creator Mark Burnet, former NBC boss Jeff Zucker, and WME agent Ari Emanuel in helping to create Trump as a reality TV personality.
“As I said before, I think that without Donald Trump, the reality star, there is not a Donald Trump, president.”
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Why It’s Important: “The Apprentice” ran for 15 seasons on NBC, a unit of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA). Trump was portrayed as a successful mogul for the first 14 seasons, which gave rise to his famous catchphrase — "You're fired."
Trump was eventually fired by the network over derogatory comments made during his presidential run.
Trump made an estimated $214 million during his tenure on the show, which also boosted the licensing and branding power of his business. The first four seasons of the show each averaged over 10 million viewers per episode.
Trump reportedly told Burnett that reality television “was for the bottom-feeders of society.”
Trump’s role on the show may also explain why he cares so much about his portrayal on social media. For years, Trump was active on social media platforms like Twitter Inc. (NYSE:TWTR) before getting banned.
Trump’s comments on Twitter often came across as over-the-top and might be part of his portrayal of a successful person on the reality show despite previous bankruptcies and legal troubles.
The former president is still the principal owner of The Trump Organization. He also launched a media company called Trump Media & Technology Group, which owns the social media platform Truth Social and has television and movie aspirations. The company has a pending SPAC deal with Digital World Acquisition Corporation (NASDAQ:DWAC).
But it was "The Apprentice" that "opened up a whole new world financially for him," Haberman says. "It also took him to a different level of stardom.”
