Why the Hookers are winning on The Apprentice

Breast for Success
What's really behind the sex-sells antics on The Apprentice.
By Dahlia Lithwick
Posted Friday, Feb. 6, 2004, at 2:39 PM PT

In The Donald's world, women rule

Donald Trump's reality show, The Apprentice, has lots to tell us about lots of
things. Business schools are using it as a teaching tool, and feminist
commentators are at war over whether women's sexuality represents power or
slavery. The show, styled as "the ultimate job interview," pits eight beautiful
young women against eight moderately attractive young men, all competing for a
job in the Trump organization at a starting salary of $250,000. (Each contestant
has a solid business background.) The big shocker, after five episodes, is meant
to be that the women's team shamelessly use their hooters to score business
wins. They have hit the streets of Manhattan and peddled warm lemonade,
sweetened with kisses and their phone numbers. They have bumped and grinded to
bargain for gold. They have donned toddler-sized T-shirts to induce Planet
Hollywood patrons to do shots with them. The men's team has lost for four weeks
running, with one man "fired" at the end of each show. The men were in fact
pummeled so badly that Trump was forced into a corporate "reshuffle" this
week—mixing the genders to give the four remaining men a fighting chance.

No one disputes that the women's conduct is effective: The show mostly just
proves that prostitution really is the world's oldest and most lucrative
profession. But debate rages over whether it's appropriate in today's business
world. A Nexis search including the terms "Trump, Apprentice, and sex" reveals
that 206 articles on the subject have been written. The breakdown generally goes
like this: Male reviewers find the whorish conduct sad but entertaining, older
women find it shameful and degrading, and younger women, particularly the cute
ones, find it liberating and thrilling. One letter to the New York Times crows:
"Sex is power!" Which echoes the sentiments of the show's female contestants who
say things like: "If being attractive is wrong, then what we do is wrong."

All this discussion, interesting as it may be, misses the real point of The
Apprentice. The gender conflict is a side issue, a distraction. The truly
interesting anxiety at work in this show is generational: These women and men
are revealing the massive gap between the way young men and women, and older men
and older women, think about sex.

Who is having a great time on the set of The Apprentice? The Donald, for one.
Trump is having the time of his life because these hot young foxes are falling
all over themselves to please him—and doing so in the wee-est of garments. Now,
that is good business for him and for his powerful associates—a generation of
moguls who can mouth platitudes about equality but still date only preteen
models. In one episode Donny Deutsch—the head of an advertising agency—lauds the
women's team's efforts to launch an ad campaign—the ads they come up with are so
phallic they get named "the testicle ad." As Deutsch hands them the win he
cackles delightedly that their presentation (in stewardess costumes) had "set
the women's movement back 70 years." This week sees Trump stepping into an
elevator with one co-ed team and leering at one of the men: "Nice to have these
girls with ya, huh?" Moments later, as the group crowds into George
Steinbrenner's office, Steinbrenner greets Trump with a hug and crows lechily,
"I knew there would be pretty girls!"

Who else is having a blast on The Apprentice? The girls! They are kicking the
men's butts by celebrating their own. They've stolen Ally McBeal's résumé but
lost the self-doubt. Their de rigueur business uniform: tight low-rise jeans,
belly-button shirts, and stiletto boots. Their giggly delight is about their
power, and one hesitates to begrudge them. Sure, they have a moment's misgiving
when they meet Trump's Slovenian supermodel girlfriend.* You can see it in their
eyes: Why fight to work for Trump, when you can get him to work for you? But
overall, the sex for power bargain is working for them. They are on their way
up. There is a perfect synergy between what the young women want and what the
old men have, and all the show's sparks comes from that truth.

Who isn't having fun on The Apprentice? Well, Trump's hench-person, Carolyn
Kepcher, for one. Wan and exhausted, she looks ready to expire at any time.
Kepcher, who's worked for Trump for almost 10 years, sits by his side and
advises him about whom to fire. Trump mostly ignores her. It can't help that she
dresses like Nancy Reagan—this week's outfit, all buttons and power-scarf,
practically screams "breast-free zone." The only moment in five weeks in which
she has exhumed a spirit was when Trump lambasted the women last week: "You're
coming a little close to crossing the line, relying on your sexuality to win,"
he intoned. "That won't get you the job here!" Kepcher exclaimed, showing real
enthusiasm for the first time. Since then she's returned to her sullen
bewilderment: She is obviously as confounded by what happened to the women's
movement as the rest of us.

But the least fun to be had on the show is among the young men, all of whom seem
to be adhering to some 1950s code of business success: They wear suits. They
call Trump "Sir." (Some of the women have taken to calling him "Donald.") They
are respectful, if terrified, around the women. They have clearly grown up in an
era of political correctness; if the ladies' hooker-gear offends them, they
never mention it. Does it bother them that they could not have done to their
female waitresses what the women did to themselves last week—dressed up in tiny
"shooters girls" (a play on Hooters girls) T-shirts and insisted that Planet
Hollywood patrons do shots with them? If the guys had asked women to do it
they'd have been sued for harassment. Since when is sex a game only women can
play? Does it madden the men? Who knows? They never say. They just trudge
stolidly along, with their business plans and their management principles,
getting their butts kicked and trying to take it manfully. These guys have
nothing—not power, not sex. The currency that once counted for them—their MBAs
and the ability to sink a 3-pointer—jingles like loose pennies in their pockets.

Whether these women should be tarting it up to get ahead is one question. I
leave it to the traditional feminists and their lipstick counterparts to work
that out. The more interesting question is whether their daughters will have to
(or want to) "breast for success" when their turn comes. Oddly, that will turn
somewhat on how these poor, broken young men view women and sexuality after a
generation of being so confounded by it. One can only hope that by the time they
are Donald's age, they will have figured out how to act it.

Correction, Feb. 12, 2004: An earlier version of this article referred to
Trump's girlfriend, Melania Knauss, as Italian. Return to the corrected
sentence.


Dahlia Lithwick is a Slate senior editor.

In article , dapimp
wrote:

She is obviously as confounded by what happened to the women's
movement as the rest of us.


LOL, that sums this show up better than anything else. It's horrifying.
(Though still an interesting show)

I sure wish they'd get rid of that Osamarama woman. I can't take
hearing how she grew up in the projects again. As if she's the only
poor kid who did good in American history. :::yawn:::

Well written and insightful.

I am writing to post on last night's show, where it was clear that the
main bitch, Amorosa Sour, should have been the one to be fired.

Trump pushed her into saying something nasty about Heidi and Jesse
(not hard to do), then fired Jesse for "not standing up for herself."

Well, she didn't, but neither did Heidi, and I think the reason she
didn't was because she was thinking, "OK, let's sit here just let her
say whatever the hell she wants, as long as we get rid of her. I'll
be Miss Nice Guy and she'll really look like a mean, arrogant bitch."

I think her "not standing up for herself" was more strategy (in that
boardroom) than weakness. But once Trump and/or the producers make up
their minds, there's no reasoning with them, and she was gone. I
don't think she had what it took to be the person he's looking for and
win the whole show, but it definitely should have been Arrogant
Amoroso that left this week. If it's fine to be tough and mean in
business (I personally don't think so, but obviously Trump does, and
has done it himself), it would be nice if you were also effective in
what you were doing instead of just repulsive.

My favorite quote of the show so far:

Trump to Omarosa last night: "You have an attitude!"

Ha! And what do you call what The Donald has?!

Second favorite quote, Heidi to Omarosa after Omarosa got finished
giving her the "compliment" that she had no class: "I HAVE class!!!"

Loved how the Donald kept going on and on about how it was the ugliest
compliment he had ever heard, blah blah.

Yes, Heidi is totally classless, looks totally like a hooker...is
there any doubt why Trump selected her for the show??

dapimp wrote:

Breast for Success
What's really behind the sex-sells antics on The Apprentice.
By Dahlia Lithwick
Posted Friday, Feb. 6, 2004, at 2:39 PM PT

In The Donald's world, women rule

Donald Trump's reality show, The Apprentice, has lots to tell us about lots of
things. Business schools are using it as a teaching tool, and feminist
commentators are at war over whether women's sexuality represents power or
slavery. The show, styled as "the ultimate job interview," pits eight beautiful
young women against eight moderately attractive young men, all competing for a
job in the Trump organization at a starting salary of $250,000. (Each contestant
has a solid business background.) The big shocker, after five episodes, is meant
to be that the women's team shamelessly use their hooters to score business
wins. They have hit the streets of Manhattan and peddled warm lemonade,
sweetened with kisses and their phone numbers. They have bumped and grinded to
bargain for gold. They have donned toddler-sized T-shirts to induce Planet
Hollywood patrons to do shots with them. The men's team has lost for four weeks
running, with one man "fired" at the end of each show. The men were in fact
pummeled so badly that Trump was forced into a corporate "reshuffle" this
week—mixing the genders to give the four remaining men a fighting chance.

No one disputes that the women's conduct is effective: The show mostly just
proves that prostitution really is the world's oldest and most lucrative
profession. But debate rages over whether it's appropriate in today's business
world. A Nexis search including the terms "Trump, Apprentice, and sex" reveals
that 206 articles on the subject have been written. The breakdown generally goes
like this: Male reviewers find the whorish conduct sad but entertaining, older
women find it shameful and degrading, and younger women, particularly the cute
ones, find it liberating and thrilling. One letter to the New York Times crows:
"Sex is power!" Which echoes the sentiments of the show's female contestants who
say things like: "If being attractive is wrong, then what we do is wrong."

All this discussion, interesting as it may be, misses the real point of The
Apprentice. The gender conflict is a side issue, a distraction. The truly
interesting anxiety at work in this show is generational: These women and men
are revealing the massive gap between the way young men and women, and older men
and older women, think about sex.

Who is having a great time on the set of The Apprentice? The Donald, for one.
Trump is having the time of his life because these hot young foxes are falling
all over themselves to please him—and doing so in the wee-est of garments. Now,
that is good business for him and for his powerful associates—a generation of
moguls who can mouth platitudes about equality but still date only preteen
models. In one episode Donny Deutsch—the head of an advertising agency—lauds the
women's team's efforts to launch an ad campaign—the ads they come up with are so
phallic they get named "the testicle ad." As Deutsch hands them the win he
cackles delightedly that their presentation (in stewardess costumes) had "set
the women's movement back 70 years." This week sees Trump stepping into an
elevator with one co-ed team and leering at one of the men: "Nice to have these
girls with ya, huh?" Moments later, as the group crowds into George
Steinbrenner's office, Steinbrenner greets Trump with a hug and crows lechily,
"I knew there would be pretty girls!"

Who else is having a blast on The Apprentice? The girls! They are kicking the
men's butts by celebrating their own. They've stolen Ally McBeal's résumé but
lost the self-doubt. Their de rigueur business uniform: tight low-rise jeans,
belly-button shirts, and stiletto boots. Their giggly delight is about their
power, and one hesitates to begrudge them. Sure, they have a moment's misgiving
when they meet Trump's Slovenian supermodel girlfriend.* You can see it in their
eyes: Why fight to work for Trump, when you can get him to work for you? But
overall, the sex for power bargain is working for them. They are on their way
up. There is a perfect synergy between what the young women want and what the
old men have, and all the show's sparks comes from that truth.

Who isn't having fun on The Apprentice? Well, Trump's hench-person, Carolyn
Kepcher, for one. Wan and exhausted, she looks ready to expire at any time.
Kepcher, who's worked for Trump for almost 10 years, sits by his side and
advises him about whom to fire. Trump mostly ignores her. It can't help that she
dresses like Nancy Reagan—this week's outfit, all buttons and power-scarf,
practically screams "breast-free zone." The only moment in five weeks in which
she has exhumed a spirit was when Trump lambasted the women last week: "You're
coming a little close to crossing the line, relying on your sexuality to win,"
he intoned. "That won't get you the job here!" Kepcher exclaimed, showing real
enthusiasm for the first time. Since then she's returned to her sullen
bewilderment: She is obviously as confounded by what happened to the women's
movement as the rest of us.

But the least fun to be had on the show is among the young men, all of whom seem
to be adhering to some 1950s code of business success: They wear suits. They
call Trump "Sir." (Some of the women have taken to calling him "Donald.") They
are respectful, if terrified, around the women. They have clearly grown up in an
era of political correctness; if the ladies' hooker-gear offends them, they
never mention it. Does it bother them that they could not have done to their
female waitresses what the women did to themselves last week—dressed up in tiny
"shooters girls" (a play on Hooters girls) T-shirts and insisted that Planet
Hollywood patrons do shots with them? If the guys had asked women to do it
they'd have been sued for harassment. Since when is sex a game only women can
play? Does it madden the men? Who knows? They never say. They just trudge
stolidly along, with their business plans and their management principles,
getting their butts kicked and trying to take it manfully. These guys have
nothing—not power, not sex. The currency that once counted for them—their MBAs
and the ability to sink a 3-pointer—jingles like loose pennies in their pockets.

Whether these women should be tarting it up to get ahead is one question. I
leave it to the traditional feminists and their lipstick counterparts to work
that out. The more interesting question is whether their daughters will have to
(or want to) "breast for success" when their turn comes. Oddly, that will turn
somewhat on how these poor, broken young men view women and sexuality after a
generation of being so confounded by it. One can only hope that by the time they
are Donald's age, they will have figured out how to act it.

Correction, Feb. 12, 2004: An earlier version of this article referred to
Trump's girlfriend, Melania Knauss, as Italian. Return to the corrected
sentence.


Dahlia Lithwick is a Slate senior editor.

Mary wrote:
I think her "not standing up for herself" was more strategy (in that
boardroom) than weakness. But once Trump and/or the producers make up
their minds, there's no reasoning with them, and she was gone.

The way I had heard it was that Trump said that she had not stood up for
herself during the negotiations, and Trump wasn't refering to the board room.

Amarosa is probably much better for the ratings because she creates
conflicts/controversy. The show would be totally boring if there were no
conflicts and everyone got along together well. (look at the other tribe, they
were getting boring so now that will put in some sexual tensions between the
members of that tribe).

Trump is a business man. He knows that the show generates money with ratings.
So his decisions would be a balance between ensuring success of the show
versus selection of the best possible person. This show is also great PR for
Trump. (for instance, showing off how he donated a skaing rink to NYC).

In the end, the winner will get a job created just for him/her based on that
person's abilities. Trump might give him a McDonalds franchise, or he might
give him management of a large office building in new York. We don't know what
sort of job is awaiting the winner.

So far, it seems that the photogenic participants have an edge over those who
are not so great. And I'd venture a politically incorrect statement he
amarosa, as a female black participant, is probably getting a slightly better
chance than the others. (She will still need to demonstrate skills, but I
suspect Trump might be a bit mroe foregiving of her mistakes than some other participant.

"Netaxxa" wrote in message
news
Loved how the Donald kept going on and on about how it was the ugliest
compliment he had ever heard, blah blah.

Yes, Heidi is totally classless, looks totally like a hooker...is
there any doubt why Trump selected her for the show??

This show has only one agenda.
And it's not to find people who demonstrate actual business savvy.
The agenda is to have everyone watching the show.
If that means filling it with people who look like hookers,
shrews with a chip on thier shoulder shouting everyone else down,
throw in a bunch of low level, loud mouths, he'll keep them on.
And will give the winner a job for a day and then fire him/her.
Then the winner will make the rounds in various talk shows and
run into Trista Rehn and that guy she tricked er.. married.

Mary wrote:

Well written and insightful.

I am writing to post on last night's show, where it was clear that the
main bitch, Amorosa Sour, should have been the one to be fired.

Trump pushed her into saying something nasty about Heidi and Jesse
(not hard to do), then fired Jesse for "not standing up for herself."

Well, she didn't, but neither did Heidi, and I think the reason she
didn't was because she was thinking, "OK, let's sit here just let her
say whatever the hell she wants, as long as we get rid of her. I'll
be Miss Nice Guy and she'll really look like a mean, arrogant bitch."

I think she didn't because she's one of those women who wants everyone
to like her and/or was afraid not be nice because she knew Amorosa was
taking her to the boardroom. Kristi had the same weakness of wanting
everyone to like her.


I think her "not standing up for herself" was more strategy (in that
boardroom) than weakness. But once Trump and/or the producers make up
their minds, there's no reasoning with them, and she was gone.

I totally disagree. I think Trump has made it quite obvious that he has
more respect for people who stand up for themselves than people who are
"nice". He fired Kristi for the exact same reason last week. It's been
my experience that it is quite common for women (and men) in high
positions to be totally bitchy and mean to the people below them, yet
they do not get fired. Bosses also like people under them who will be
the bad cop so that they can play nice guy and let them do the dirty
work and take the heat from employees. Trump obviously wants people out
there representing his interests who care less about being liked than
standing up for themselves (or his interests). That blond in the
boardroom isn't all that sweet, and he called her a killer.

I
don't think she had what it took to be the person he's looking for and
win the whole show, but it definitely should have been Arrogant
Amoroso that left this week. If it's fine to be tough and mean in
business (I personally don't think so, but obviously Trump does, and
has done it himself), it would be nice if you were also effective in
what you were doing instead of just repulsive.

Amorosa won't last because she really is an ineffective leader in the
end--she's too abrasive to even get the clients to like her, but he
seems to be knocking out all the softies first.