A Quote by Michael Wolff

For decades, Trump had no life independent from the media. He became a figure in the nation, and his a monitisable name - albeit quite a ludicrous one - because of his nonstop, relentless, shameless and often embarrassing courtship of the media.
Trump is somebody who sees the media as basically his main constituency. So much of his self-worth and his image and his view of what the presidency should be about is the media and how he is reflected in the media.
The media are used to being able to control the agenda of both their friends and their enemies, their buddies and their opponents, and Trump doesn't play by their rules because Trump is not afraid of them. And Trump knows that he doesn't need them. That's the big equalizer. Unlike most Republicans who think they can't get anywhere without at least some favorable treatment in the media or at least less criticism from the media, Trump doesn't need the media. He's got his Twitter account and he's got his rallies.
Trump knows how to play the media all on his own. He creates his own Twitter feed and uses it. He knows how to get the media's attention without the benefit of a state-controlled media. He does it all on his own. Trump understands how a free media works.
A traditional presidential campaign has a media bus with the candidate's name on it and an itinerary days in advance. Trump has a plane with his name on it (that we aren't invited on) and an itinerary that often mutates daily, along with his talking points.
Trump has taken it to a new level. He is now viewing the media as the 'opposition party,' in his own words. Consequently, media coverage of Trump has become that much more significant.
Trump needs the media to act the way they do so he can dunk on them and look good by comparison. The media are enjoying the short-term rush of their war with Trump, wearing his abuse as a badge of honor among their peers.
Even if Donald Trump had lost the 2016 election, instead of won it in a surprise, the media's coverage of his campaign and supporters would have been a horrific failure. They presented that race as unwinnable for Trump and as if his support was inexplicable.
It turns out that all of the things I was looking for in a governor, Trump has even more. He has been vetted by the media; he has been attacked by the media his entire life and is perfectly comfortable in front of a gaggle of microphones.
Donald Trump has the media wrapped around his little finger. And this is a contributing factor to why so many people are bothered and upset, because even in the Republican establishment, the media is looked at as a legitimate player in the power arrangement of politics.
Trump's act of construction is not building a building. It is building the meaning of the name "Trump." Because his revenue really comes from selling his name to people who do actually build things. They pay enormous sums of money for the supposed privilege of being associated with the name Trump or the name Ivanka, because of that image construction. That's why it seemed like a good idea for Trump to run for president in the first place.
Trump's war on the nation's news media, his war on truth, his war on reality ultimately caused him to become the first U.S. president to be impeached two times.
Donald Trump had a hit TV show on NBC for 14 years! He was covered by every major newspaper for 30 years. The idea that any one person humanized... He's been the most human figure for decades. The reason he won is because he knows how to use the media and he's a great communicator, whether you agree with the message or not.
Obama hasn't lost his standing because of tricks played by the Republicans. He hasn't lost his standing because the media's not fair to him. He hasn't lost his standing or his approval number because the media spent four years attacking him like they did George W. Bush. This is all on him.
Mr. Trump understands that attacking the media is the reddest of meat for his base, which has been conditioned to reject reporting from news sites outside of the conservative media ecosystem.
That's another thing the #NeverTrump-ers can't figure out and despise. But the media did, too. The media was fascinated. [Donald] Trump was ratings. He was money, and still is.
I remember a prominent conservative media figure, talking to him about prominent liberal media figures that he knew, that he liked. And I questioned him. "How can you trust these people? I mean, these are..." "No, no! They're good guys. In fact, one of them likes you, says you're not a hater." And I was supposed to be thrilled to hear this!I was supposed to be mollified that some liberal media figure had just pronounced I was okay because, after he had listened to me, he had determined I wasn't a hater. I did not take that as a compliment, and I got kind of mad.
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