Celebrity News November 04, 2019
Brian Stelter Weighs In on NBC Releasing Employees from NDAs
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“Extra” caught up with Brian Stelter at a Paley Center event in NYC, where he opened up about his book “Top of the Morning” coming to life on Apple TV+ as “The Morning Show.” He also weighed in on the real-life drama unfolding on morning television.
Brian explained, “The day that this really became real for me was visiting the set, sitting in on a script read, and watching Reese [Witherspoon] and Jen [Aniston] read these scripts, become these characters, and host a morning TV show… They play these morning show stars in this incredibly believable, authentic way, but they also take you behind the scenes.”
Stelter also commented on NBC releasing former employees from nondisclosure agreements in the wake of Ronan Farrow's new book “Catch and Kill.” The book investigates media companies using nondisclosure agreements to bury stories.
Last month, NBC announced in a statement, “Any former NBC News employee who believes that they cannot disclose their experience with sexual harassment as a result of a confidentiality or non-disparagement provision in their separation agreement should contact NBCUniversal and we will release them from that perceived obligation.”
Brian, who is also a political commentator, gave us his thoughts on the news. “I think this idea of nondisclosure agreements and secret settlements and payoffs — this is an outdated idea that never should have been done in the first place,” he said. “It is far past time to break out of this model of secrecy and silence around these issues. I think it is really inspiring to see women — and some men — but really these women who have had to sign away their rights in the past find ways to speak out and call out this system.”
He went on, “NBC has been under tremendous pressure thanks to the Ronan Farrow book ['Catch and Kill']… It makes sense for NBC to try to relieve some of the pressure by announcing they will allow people out of their nondisclosure agreements. Of course, they are still putting the onus on the people who signed those agreements. They are still making these women reach out and ask for permission, so I'm a little skeptical of how much of an impact it will have.”
