“Trump Unauthorized”
attempts to go behind the story we associate with
Donald Trump, showing weaknesses he may chose
to otherwise hide.
Capitalizing upon the success of Trump’s endeavors; shows like “The
Apprentice” and books like “How to be rich” isn’t an easy task, yet ABC
attempts to show a different side to the man through “Trump
Unauthorized”. This is a rather self-deprecating look at the man
who has found his second wind through television, as the network
chronicles everything from his first marriage to being pitched the idea
for the “The Apprentice” by Mark Burnett himself. Trump’s resolve
was here, yet so was his indifference to Ivana when he was courting
Marla Maples, who he eventually wed and divorced just a few years
later. The man who hates to fire anyone had no problem doing so
with his former wives.
You get to see Trump’s bullheadedness every time one of his projects
failed, and his indifference to those who contested his construction
projects, yet none of this is particularly telling as you already
arrive at these conclusions from seeing him in action on The
Apprentice, or if you have read any of his books, which are typically
tongue-in-cheek. In real life, Trump’s attempts to get New
Yorkers behind a design of the Twin Towers is just the latest in a
series of PR exercises to keep himself in the papers and ahead of
everyone else. This is a design which, of course, could have been
entered in the original competition, yet Trump seems to feel that this
particular design, which is eerily reminiscent of the towers, stands
tantamount to the one chosen by the commission a year ago.
Perhaps he is influence by “The World Trade Center Restoration
Movement”, which asserts that “The World Trade Center towers MUST rise
again, at least as tall as before...or terror has triumphed.”
This wasn’t the first time ABC attempted to show a different side to
Donald Trump, however. Last year you were able to see Trump’s
nepitism at it’s best, as his three oldest Trumps kids seem to be eager
to enter the family business. Ivanka mentioned that Trump “raised
us with values and tries to keep us as grounded as possible” while
Trump maintains that he has “on a very heavy regiment of discipline”,
which is interesting as Donald Jr. maintains that he was “spoiled
culturally and educationally but not financially”. Exactly what
does that mean exactly, other than the fact that he can appreciate a
good opera and a Harvard education, yet is willing to work hard for
everything? Trump lives a clean life, and expects his children to
do the same, although critics would suggest that buying drug and
alcohol free says little when morals are on the line.
Intelligently, Burnett has focused on
showing how well Trump reinforces
good morals through the business decisions he makes, as the executives
that are often fired on The Apprentice are those whose leadership was
blinded by their frailty. If you do not have the resolve to put
your own conviction behind those decisions ahead of hurting someone
other’s feelings, you do not deserve to work for him, because being
double minded isn’t good for anyone, and hurts the objective of the
corporations’ mission in general. When you look at it that way
firing someone isn’t quite that bad. This is part of the wonder
of awe one has of Trump, and I’m not sure how showing Trump’s
weaknesses and debunking the myth helped him or the network.