EXCLUSIVE: JAKE TAPPER'S BOOK BOMBS, RATINGS PLUNGE & NETWORK FAITH FADES
PLUS: SARA HAINES BLOCKED BY SURPRISING TODAY SHOW POWER PLAYER. MEGHAN MOCKS MONARCHY’S “SILLY RULES"
EXCLUSIVE: TAPPED OUT! JAKE TAPPER’S ANTI-BIDEN BOOK BOMBS — AND SO DOES HIS CAREER
CNN fans didn’t want it. Fox News fans didn’t want him. Now Jake Tapper is facing the fallout of a spectacular misfire.
#ShuterScoop can reveal that Tapper’s tell-all political takedown Original Sin has flopped in its first week, selling just 53,737 print copies — a far cry from political blockbusters like Bob Woodward’s Fear, which topped 1.1 million copies in week one.
“He thought he’d make millions,” a publishing insider dished. “Instead, the book tanked — and so did his credibility.”
CNN cleared the decks for Tapper’s rollout — allowing blanket promotion across all platforms. But insiders say the backlash has been fierce and immediate.
“CNN went all-in,” one network staffer tells #ShuterScoop. “Now they’re paying the price. It blew up in their faces.”
Ratings for The Lead with Jake Tapper briefly spiked around launch day — peaking at 740,000 viewers on May 9 — but quickly fell back to 515,000 within days. By May 21, he was back to under 500K, below where he started.
“He’s alienated everyone,” one producer admits. “CNN loyalists feel betrayed. The right still doesn’t trust him. There’s no one left.”
Even worse? Insiders claim Tapper wrote the book in secret while anchoring nightly Biden coverage — sparking ethical concerns.
“He had a financial interest in making Biden look bad,” a DC insider says. “That’s not journalism. That’s opportunism — and people saw through it.”
Now, with sales plummeting, ratings declining, and newsroom respect eroding, one thing is clear:
“He bet it all on one big swing — and struck out.”
#ShuterScoop
EXCLUSIVE: TODAY SHOW BOSS WHO BLOCKED SARA HAINES’ RISE REVEALED — IT WASN’T ZUCKER OR SAVANNAH
Sources tell #ShuterScoop the real force behind Sara Haines’ stalled NBC career wasn’t Jeff Zucker or Savannah Guthrie — it was Tammy Filler, the Fourth Hour’s controversial former EP.
“She flat out told Sara, ‘We don’t see you in the host chair,’” one NBC veteran recalls. “It crushed her.”
Now co-hosting The View to acclaim and strong ratings, Haines is thriving at ABC — while the exec who passed on her potential is “not exactly swimming in hits.”
“She tried to block a future star,” says one ex-colleague. “And ABC is laughing all the way to the ratings bank.”
#ShuterScoop
EXCLUSIVE: MEGHAN MARKLE TAKES SWIPE AT ‘SILLY’ ROYAL RULES
While chatting with Sara Blakely on the finale of Confessions of a Female Founder, Meghan Markle offered parenting advice that insiders say was anything but random.
“If you have a name picked out, keep it close,” she warned. “Don’t ask anyone’s opinion.”
According to royal sources, this was a direct jab at the backlash over baby Lilibet’s name — and the Queen’s behind-the-scenes fury.
“She sees those royal naming rules as outdated and ridiculous,” one source said. “She’s still angry about it — and this was her way of saying, ‘Never again.’”
#ShuterScoop
EXCLUSIVE: PRINCE KNEW DIDDY ATTACKED CASSIE
New testimony reveals that Diddy’s former assistant says the rapper physically attacked Cassie Ventura at a private Prince-hosted party — and Prince’s own security had to intervene.
“Prince knew everything that happened in his world,” a source tells #ShuterScoop. “He saw it — and chose silence.”
The story raises serious questions about who knew what — and why more didn’t speak out, even among music royalty.
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