Melania Trump’s Publisher Demands $250K for CNN Interview. CNN Declined It.

CNN requested an interview with Melania Trump nearly two months ago regarding her upcoming memoir, but her publisher, Skyhorse Publishing, sent a nondisclosure agreement asking for a $250,000 licensing fee. CNN declined to sign the agreement. Skyhorse Publishing admitted the $250,000 interview fee request was a mistake due to internal miscommunication and clarified that neither Melania Trump nor her team knew the demand. Paying a public figure for an interview, particularly the spouse of a political candidate, is widely regarded as unethical in most newsrooms.