Kate Gosselin’s reputation for being a hardnosed snob is well-earned, according to NBC staffers, who were on the receiving end of some devilish behavior from the Jon & Kate Plus 8 star during her appearance on The TODAY Show Monday.

She was ”a total bitch” while at NBC’s Rockefeller Center studios for a tell-all interview with Meredith Vieira, a tipster tattled to The Chicago-Sun Times. ”We get virtually all of the world’s biggest egos coming through here, but Kate was one of the most unpleasant I’ve seen in working here for many years.”

Kate is said to be particularly displeased at being asked direct questions by Vieira, who was reportedly the subject of a four-letter rant from the TLC reality star as she stormed out of the building en route to her Manhattan hotel.

An insider says, ”Meredith very clearly, and in a straightforward way, asked exactly the questions you’d expect. She asked about the alleged affair with her bodyguard — which really seemed to pissed [Kate] off –her relationship with Jon [Gosselin], how her kids were doing and whether ‘if you could do it over again, would you?’ ”

”She was swearing like a drunken sailor….”