author

NBCUniversal was not willing to bend on that point, according to two people close to the negotiations who were not authorized to speak publicly.

The law firm strongly denied paying people to sue and said no representative of the firm had been authorized to make payments.

The White House said Hall has never been authorized by Homan to represent him.

Brian Soucek is the author of the forthcoming book "The Opinionated University: Academic Freedom, Diversity, and the Myth of Neutrality in American Higher Education."

She is the author of "Scream: Chilling Adventures in the Science of Fear."