Donald Trump Turned 'the Apprentice' Into a Showcase of Sexism
Interviews with crew, editors, and former contestants turned up a consistent story of life behind the scenes of the NBC television show The Apprentice: Donald Trump was a sexist boor.
In his years as a reality TV boss on "The Apprentice," Donald Trump repeatedly demeaned women with sexist language, according to show insiders who said he rated female contestants by the size of their breasts and talked about which ones he'd like to have sex with. …
It’s clear that Trump wasn’t judging female contestants on their business acumen. He judged them the same way Donald Trump always judges women.
During one season, Trump called for female contestants to wear shorter dresses that also showed more cleavage, according to contestant Gene Folkes. Several cast members said Trump had one female contestant twirl before him so he could ogle her figure.
Even though Trump was married to Melania at the time, he talked frequently about which contestants he’d like to sleep with and how they would behave during sex, causing considerable embarrassment to contestants and crew alike.
And as with any story of Donald Trump and talking about women, you know what’s coming.
Eight former crew members recalled that he repeatedly made lewd comments about a camerawoman he said had a nice rear, comparing her beauty to that of his daughter, Ivanka.
When confronted with this evidence, the Trump campaign also did what it always does — attack the people who told the truth about Trump.
The Trump campaign issued a general denial. "These outlandish, unsubstantiated, and totally false claims fabricated by publicity hungry, opportunistic, disgruntled former employees, have no merit whatsoever," said Hope Hicks, Trump's campaign spokeswoman. "The Apprentice was one of the most successful prime-time television shows of all time and employed hundreds of people over many years, many of whom support Mr. Trump's candidacy." She declined to answer specific questions that were emailed and declined an interview request.
Many? How many? Because of those interviewed, it didn’t seem that Trump had a host of supporters.
The idea that behind the scenes crew would raise the issue for “publicity” is ludicrous. Workers who are frequently seeking new positions, moving from one show to the next, have nothing to gain, and everything to lose, by publicly acknowledging difficulties on the job.
It looks as if Trump is the one who is quick to jump on his accusers. But then, that's been demonstrated again and again.
