Jeff Probst reveals how he makes a fair deal during Survivor negotiations

The new Survivor Social and Sanctuary reward wasn't the only first in Survivor history during Survivor 47 episode 5, "The Scales Be Tippin." For the first time in the history of the game, a tribe returned chickens won as a reward to negotiate with Jeff Probst.

That's right; the Gata tribe brought the three chickens to the immunity challenge to swap them out for some eggs. The chickens weren't laying eggs, and the Gata tribe couldn't decide to eat chickens. So, they wanted to make a trade.

On the new episode of the On Fire with Jeff Probst podcast, Jeff Probst talked over the scenario with Jay Wolff and Charlie Davis.

So, what was Probst thinking when he saw the chickens at the challenge? Was he surprised?

"Well, yeah, it surprised me in the fact that we've never had anyone return chickens," Jeff said. "That one was a shocker. But, it was a great reminder why every season of Survivor is unique, because of the group dynamic. You have people from so many different walks of life, approaches to life, different value systems, different priorities. You can never predict what will happen in any given situation when you have multiple people with multiple opinions."

I mean, it should be surprising to everyone because it literally hasn't happened in the game before. We've seen, in prior seasons, players have a problem ethically, morally, and spiritually with the chickens being killed so the players can eat. I understand that argument. It makes sense in some ways. Why should these chickens die so the players who willingly went on a game show knowing they would have limited food resources can eat?

That's actually the reason that Survivor offers chickens or eggs to the players as a reward. It adds more decisions into the game, and decisions often times cause conflict between players.

So, then, Probst had to make a decision when the Gata tribe brought these chickens and wanted to trade them for eggs. As you'll recall from the episode, Sam Phalen negotiated for Gata. He asked for two dozen chickens. After a little back and forth, Probst and the Gata tribe agreed to a deal to trade the three chickens for 18 eggs.

Probst explained to Wolff and Davis on the podcast how he tries to negotiate when the players bring an offer like this to the table.

"The thought process, for me, on a negotiation is really pretty simple," Probst said. "I just ask myself, 'If I am at home watching right now, and I'm just doing my best to be objectively fair at that moment within the spirit of what Survivor is about, is this offer a fair one?' And, not just for this tribe, but for the other tribe or tribes, as well."

Probst also mentioned worrying about setting a precedent when players want to bargain.

"And, the question always in the back of your mind is, are we going to set a precedent that could come back to haunt us?" Probst continued. "So, you're making that decision in real time, but I felt the deal we made was fair and was in the spirit of the game."

Probst shared more of his reasoning why the deal was fair on the podcast, as well.

"Because I looked at it like this, those chickens are an asset that tribe earned," Probst said. "And, they've decided we don't have any use for them. Well, it's still an asset. It still has some value in terms of a negotiation. And, I felt the asset of meat, the chickens, was pretty valuable, and their request for eggs seemed fair."

What a great negotiation! This is the reason I love On Fire with Jeff Probst. We're not getting this kind of insight for all of the reality shows. There are only a select few that allow this level of behind-the-scenes access into the decisions that are happening in the game.

As it turns out, Davis thinks Probst might have actually fleeced the Gata tribe, who were happy to get anything from the chickens because they were not working out. Davis calculated the caloric value of each chicken and then calculated the value of each egg. In terms of calories, 18 eggs are only worth half the calories of three chickens.

Plus, the Gata tribe lost the immunity challenge, which means they lost their flint, and they didn't make a fire before the challenge so they had no way to make the eggs when they returned to camp. Womp, womp, womp.

We all know what happened from there with Anika Dhar getting voted out of Survivor 47, but it's always great to see Probst sharing the secrets of Survivor on the On Fire with Jeff Probst podcast.

New episodes of On Fire with Jeff Probst are released immediately after the new episodes of Survivor 47 on Wednesday nights.