Former NBC Anchor Blows The Whistle, Exposes Network’s Stunning Anti-Trump ‘Unit’

Former NBC anchor Billy Bush spilled the details about an alleged coordinated media campaign to undermine Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential run. Speaking to Tucker Carlson, Bush painted a damning picture of mainstream media’s behind-the-scenes activism, accusing networks of abandoning journalism in favor of partisan politics. Bush claimed that during Trump’s rise to power, major networks assembled a sprawling investigative team with a singular purpose: digging up negative stories about the then-candidate.

“[I] remember this over at ABC News, they did at the same time when Trump became president. They launched a 70… they built a 75 person investigative unit,” Bush told Carlson. “I know the guy who was head of it dedicated to anything negative on Trump, find stuff on him, and get him out. This is not journalism, this is not news, it is activism.” The interview also touched on Bush’s own experience, recalling how a leaked tape nearly derailed Trump’s campaign and ended Bush’s career at NBC. Bush described the lengths to which networks seemed willing to go, hinting at a shared agenda that left no room for dissent.

He also reflected on the atmosphere of “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” where opposing Trump appeared to take precedence over everything else, even at the expense of fairness or integrity. He pointed to Jeff Zucker, then-head of CNN, as emblematic of the resistance, noting how network leaders became central figures in shaping the narrative against Trump. “11 years later and a lawsuit over Miss Universe and whatever else… NBC feels completely differently about Donald Trump and now it’s: get him at all costs. Get him out of this presidential race at all costs,” Bush explained.

The whistleblower went further, alleging that media executives across competing networks were effectively aligned in their approach, choosing to protect each other rather than call out unethical behavior. “All the major networks shared that mission,” Bush continued. “Get him at all costs. Get him out of this presidential race at all costs.” The 2005 recording that surfaced in October 2016, just weeks before the presidential election, creating a significant political firestorm. The tape featured a conversation between Donald Trump and then-Access Hollywood host Billy Bush. Captured on a hot mic, the exchange includes Trump making crude and explicit remarks about women, including the infamous line about being able to “grab [women] by the p****” because of his celebrity status.

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The tape, obtained by The Washington Post, led to widespread condemnation across the political spectrum. Many Republicans distanced themselves from Trump at the time, and some called for him to withdraw from the presidential race. Trump apologized, describing the remarks as “locker room talk,” and maintained that he had not acted on the comments. Billy Bush faced immediate professional consequences, as he was suspended and later fired from NBC’s Today show. Trump, however, went on to win the presidency, with his supporters arguing that the media overplayed the controversy and that voters were more concerned with policy issues than past remarks.

Billy Bush, a member of the prominent Bush family, began his career in radio before transitioning to television, joining Access Hollywood in 2001, where he covered celebrity news and red carpet events. In 2016, he briefly co-hosted the third hour of NBC’s Today show. However, his career faced a major setback that same year when the infamous 2005 hot mic recording with Trump emerged, in which crude remarks about women were made. The tape remains a point of contention, frequently revisited in discussions about political scandals, media ethics, and Trump’s presidency.