Since last Friday, the Donald Trump video has been one of the hottest topics in the country. It has not only been a part of the last presidential debate, it has also damaged Billy Bush’s broadcasting career and drawn two unsuspecting women into the story — entertainment reporter Nancy O’Dell and Days of Our Lives star Arianne Zucker.
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After releasing a statement over the weekend, Zucker spoke with Today and took the high road with her comments about the incident. However, the morning news program seems to be the one who took the low road in reporting the story.
The heavily edited video that was shown on Thursday morning’s show eliminated the entire section where Bush asked Zucker to give Trump a hug. Only moments before they had stepped off the bus, the men had made sexist comments about Zucker without her knowledge.
Leaving that vital section out of the video diminishes the story against Zucker, who didn’t know the full story until the entire nation saw the Trump video. She told NBC Newsjournalist Janet Shamlian in the interview, “These are offensive comments for women. Period.”
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Shamlian did ask her if she felt that Bush “egged on” the situation, even though that crucial section was left out of the NBC video package.
Zucker responded, “Who knows how he was feeling when he walked off the bus or what he needed to do or the relationship… because when he came off the bus along with Mr. Trump, I had no feeling but professional. That’s it.”
The explanation Zucker gave is how she was feeling in the moment in 2005, not 2016. It’s really hard to believe NBC News thought it was best to eliminate that footage because it’s a vital part of the story. Trump didn’t act alone when it came to his bad behavior, he had an accomplice.
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Even though Bush has apologized and has been suspended by NBC News, it does feel like the network is protecting him and making Trump out to be the only bad guy in the situation. This is such a teachable moment for women and men of all ages and editing that video to have less of an impact feels nothing but shady. But are they protecting him or taking precautions due to Bush’s legal threats?
Zucker wasn’t surprised that any of this happened after working in the entertainment industry for decades.
“Not with that type of personality,” she summed up. “I wasn’t shocked, which is why it probably doesn’t mean a lot to me.”
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