--- title: Michael Wolff: What to Know About the 'Fire and Fury' Author description: Here's what to know about Michael Wolff, the author of a controversial new book chronicling dysfunction in President Trump's White House. canonical: https://time.com/5089728/michael-wolff-fire-and-fury-trump-white-house/ author: Katie Reilly article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-01-05T19:50:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T08:44:38.026Z article:section: Politics og:title: Who Is Michael Wolff? What to Know About the Author of Explosive New White House Book og:description: 'Fire and Fury' is causing a huge stir in Washington and beyond og:url: https://time.com/5089728/michael-wolff-fire-and-fury-trump-white-house/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt45331abe6dececd5/6988f73a656a3fa920bd30ed/who-is-michael-wolff-fire-fury.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4561 og:image:height: 2566 og:image:alt: Trump And The Press, Washington, USA - 12 Apr 2017 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Who Is Michael Wolff? What to Know About the Author of Explosive New White House Book twitter:description: 'Fire and Fury' is causing a huge stir in Washington and beyond twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt45331abe6dececd5/6988f73a656a3fa920bd30ed/who-is-michael-wolff-fire-fury.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Who Is Michael Wolff? What to Know About the Author of the Explosive New Trump Book > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=7c88d5bf-be9e-4302-bedc-5fcb8d857f02&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Who is Michael Wolff? [Watch (HLS stream): Who is Michael Wolff?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/OFmLBalO.m3u8) (1:46)  _Published 2018-01-05. What to Know About the Author of the Explosive New Trump Book_  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Jan 5, 2018 7:50 PM UTC What to Know About the Author of the Explosive New Trump Book  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Jan 5, 2018 7:50 PM UTC Michael Wolff’s new book chronicling [dysfunction within the Trump Administration](http://time.com/5087823/michael-wolff-fire-and-fury-donald-trump-white-house/) was released Friday morning, drawing [Harry Potter-style crowds](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/forget-harry-potter-in-dc-people-lined-up-at-midnight-for-michael-wolffs-trump-expose/2018/01/05/b38a8968-f226-11e7-b3bf-ab90a706e175%5Fstory.html) at Washington, D.C. bookstores and ire from the White House. Here’s what to know about the author of the news-making exposé. ## Who is Michael Wolff? Wolff, 64, has been a [columnist for _Vanity Fair_](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2009/08/wolff200908) and a [contributor to the _Hollywood Reporter_](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/michael-wolff-my-insane-year-inside-trumps-white-house-1071504) and other news outlets, including [Newsweek](http://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-versus-media-548562) and [USA Today](https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/wolff/2017/01/22/how-should-media-cover-donald-trump/96840686/), covering the media industry. He has also written several books, including [_Autumn of the Moguls_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0066621135/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=0066621135&linkId=6a43394d6aab714beced278e52c39aea)_,_ [_Burn Rate_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0684856212/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=0684856212&linkId=3e7726db723567a1b0de1eb56201b49c) and[_Television is the New Television_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0143108921/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=0143108921&linkId=45d76cadae2b984b7f79c9efac6702b4)_._ Perhaps most famously, Wolff profiled media mogul Rupert Murdoch in his 2010 book [_The Man Who Owns the News_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0767929527/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=0767929527&linkId=9026010b7c64ed6f9314f442167fa6d1). Murdoch [raised objections](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/23/books/23wolff.html) about the biography before it was published. Wolff, the former editorial director of AdWeek, began his career in journalism as a [copy boy for the New York _Times._](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/04/business/media/michael-wolff-trump.html) In 2007, he founded newser.com, an aggregation site. ## What is _Fire and Fury_? Wolff’s latest book, [released ahead of schedule](http://time.com/5088835/donald-trump-michael-wolff-early-publication/) on Friday, is titled[ _Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1250158060/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=1250158060&linkId=83bbfb9af4c746d316c78aca1228b19c). It became the top-selling book on Amazon on Thursday after [published excerpts](http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/01/michael-wolff-fire-and-fury-book-donald-trump.html) alleged shocking details and quotes from White House aides. The White House has heavily criticized the content of the book and downplayed Wolff’s access to the White House. “This is a guy who made up a lot of stories to try to sell books,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders [told Fox News](http://insider.foxnews.com/2018/01/05/sarah-sanders-fire-and-fury-michael-wolff-made-lot-stories-try-sell-books) on Friday. Sanders said Wolff never interviewed the President. But Wolff, in an [interview with the TODAY show](https://www.today.com/news/michael-wolff-says-he-absolutely-spoke-president-donald-trump-fire-t120837) on Friday, said he spent about three hours with Trump during the course of his campaign and his presidency. “I absolutely spoke to the President. Whether he realized it was an interview or not, I don’t know. But it certainly was not off the record,” Wolff said, adding that he [spoke to Trump](http://time.com/5089521/michael-wolff-fire-fury-donald-trump-book/) after his inauguration. Wolff said the book is based on 200 interviews, including those with people who work closely with Trump on a daily basis. ## Why is Michael Wolff controversial? President Trump has unsurprisingly been a [vocal critic of the book](http://time.com/5089289/donald-trump-fire-fury-book-steve-bannon/) and its author. “I authorized Zero access to White House (actually turned him down many times) for author of phony book! I never spoke to him for book. Full of lies, misrepresentations and sources that don’t exist,” Trump [tweeted](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/949126530839572481) on Thursday. “Look at this guy’s past and watch what happens to him and Sloppy Steve!” Wolff, meanwhile, said Trump’s criticism is merely helping him sell books. But other journalists have spoken out this week, some to [question Wolff’s credibility](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/04/michael-wolff-fire-fury-credibility-325399) and others to [defend his work](https://twitter.com/janicemin/status/949005110671126528). Wolff’s book on Murdoch fueled similar questions about his reporting practices. “Like the man he writes about, Wolff is a gossip who is very skilled at extracting information and sensing weakness,” the late media writer David Carr wrote in a [New York _Times_ review of the book](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/28/books/review/Carr-t.html) in 2008. But Wolff dismissed questions about his credibility on Friday and said he stands by everything in _Fire and Fury_. “My credibility is being questioned by a man who has less credibility than perhaps anyone who has ever walked on Earth at this point,” Wolff said in the TODAY interview. When asked if he flattered his way into the White House, Wolff said, “I certainly said what was ever necessary to get the story.” > [](https://twitter.com/TODAYshow/status/949261358683639808) ## Transcript Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff. A book that is controversial. A book that's complete fantasy. Michael Wolff [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] But I'm not gonna waste my time time or the country's time going page by page, talking about a book that's complete fantasy. [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] He is someone who has been accused of playing fast and loose in the past. 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