https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddie...ddow-releases-trump-tax-returns/#217a7ff37a70
Rachel Maddow Releases Trump Tax Returns
Madeline Berg, Forbes Staff
Less than two hours before her 9 o'clock show was set to air on MSNBC, Rachel Maddow tweeted that she had landed a stunning exclusive: Donald Trump's tax returns. The tweet had just enough time to go viral (it had been shared over 68,000 times before the show began, and "Rachel Maddow" was trending on Twitter almost immediately) before she went live with details from the Form 1040 from Trump's 2005 return.
Maddow said it showed that Trump reported over $150 million in income that year and paid $5.3 million in federal income tax and $31 million in alternative minimum tax. Many questions were left unanswered, including the sources of his income.
The investigative reporter and tax expert David Cay Johnston, who had obtained the 1040 in the mail and passed it on to Maddow, suggested Trump, himself, had sent him the document. Johnston he also emphasized how Trump used loopholes to secure a discounted income tax rate and that he believed the rest of the returns would show something that Trump may be trying to hide.
Trump's tax returns played a contentious role throughout the 2016 campaign after Trump refused to follow precedent and disclose his to the public, leaving many suspicious they contained comprising or embarrassing information. Trump repeatedly used the excuse that he was "under audit by the IRS" and could not release his recent returns; he also refused to release past returns.
The White House responded before the show even aired, claiming to MSNBC that the network is "desperate for ratings" and that the network was "violating a law to push a story." (Maddow disputed this, saying the First Amendment gave her the right to discuss the returns.)
“The dishonest media can continue to make this part of their agenda, while the President will focus on his, which includes tax reform that will benefit all Americans,” the statement continued.
BREAKING: We've got Trump tax returns. Tonight, 9pm ET. MSNBC.
(Seriously).
— Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) March 14, 2017
After social media went wild with the news that Maddow had obtained the portion of Trump's tax return from Johnston, the author of The Making of Donald Trump, Maddow can expect Nielsen to report a ratings bonanza. (Both Maddow's and Johnston's websites crashed following the show.)
This ratings bump will come just as Maddow—who is unapologetically left-leaning and uses long monologues to form arguments against Trump—has enjoyed her highest viewership yet these past few months. Just last week she reached a ratings milestone, with her show beating every other primetime program, including the longstanding cable news champion, Fox News' Bill O'Reilly's O'Reilly Factor. Maddow averaged 2.62 million total viewers—an eight-year high for MSNBC—and 624,000 viewers in the advertiser-coveted 25-54 demographic.
Maddow's ratings rise has coincided with increased viewership across cable news, but MSNBC has seen the largest ratings increase of the three cable newsers, proportionally, according to Nielsen ratings. The network, which used to consistently land behind Fox News and CNN, has been beating CNN more and more frequently and has even risen above Fox News a handful of times.
For the latest on the entertainment industry, follow me on Twitter @MadelinePBerg.
Rachel Maddow Releases Trump Tax Returns
Madeline Berg, Forbes Staff
Less than two hours before her 9 o'clock show was set to air on MSNBC, Rachel Maddow tweeted that she had landed a stunning exclusive: Donald Trump's tax returns. The tweet had just enough time to go viral (it had been shared over 68,000 times before the show began, and "Rachel Maddow" was trending on Twitter almost immediately) before she went live with details from the Form 1040 from Trump's 2005 return.
Maddow said it showed that Trump reported over $150 million in income that year and paid $5.3 million in federal income tax and $31 million in alternative minimum tax. Many questions were left unanswered, including the sources of his income.
The investigative reporter and tax expert David Cay Johnston, who had obtained the 1040 in the mail and passed it on to Maddow, suggested Trump, himself, had sent him the document. Johnston he also emphasized how Trump used loopholes to secure a discounted income tax rate and that he believed the rest of the returns would show something that Trump may be trying to hide.
Trump's tax returns played a contentious role throughout the 2016 campaign after Trump refused to follow precedent and disclose his to the public, leaving many suspicious they contained comprising or embarrassing information. Trump repeatedly used the excuse that he was "under audit by the IRS" and could not release his recent returns; he also refused to release past returns.
The White House responded before the show even aired, claiming to MSNBC that the network is "desperate for ratings" and that the network was "violating a law to push a story." (Maddow disputed this, saying the First Amendment gave her the right to discuss the returns.)
“The dishonest media can continue to make this part of their agenda, while the President will focus on his, which includes tax reform that will benefit all Americans,” the statement continued.
BREAKING: We've got Trump tax returns. Tonight, 9pm ET. MSNBC.
(Seriously).
— Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) March 14, 2017
After social media went wild with the news that Maddow had obtained the portion of Trump's tax return from Johnston, the author of The Making of Donald Trump, Maddow can expect Nielsen to report a ratings bonanza. (Both Maddow's and Johnston's websites crashed following the show.)
This ratings bump will come just as Maddow—who is unapologetically left-leaning and uses long monologues to form arguments against Trump—has enjoyed her highest viewership yet these past few months. Just last week she reached a ratings milestone, with her show beating every other primetime program, including the longstanding cable news champion, Fox News' Bill O'Reilly's O'Reilly Factor. Maddow averaged 2.62 million total viewers—an eight-year high for MSNBC—and 624,000 viewers in the advertiser-coveted 25-54 demographic.
Maddow's ratings rise has coincided with increased viewership across cable news, but MSNBC has seen the largest ratings increase of the three cable newsers, proportionally, according to Nielsen ratings. The network, which used to consistently land behind Fox News and CNN, has been beating CNN more and more frequently and has even risen above Fox News a handful of times.
For the latest on the entertainment industry, follow me on Twitter @MadelinePBerg.
