My sense is that Zell is supposed to be this super-powerful agent, but he's not really that good. Think about what he proposes to Harris in that first scene, and maybe it's not surprising that he doesn't get Harris any work, leading Harris to go back to the "serious" news bit. I think this is also borne out by the fact that the first thing he recommends to Harris is doing the same parade Harris just refused to do for his earlier agent. Bottom line: If you don't think they work, leave 'em out. Steve Martin didn't think they worked, either. Same goes for the scene where Zell zooms in.
Thanks for all the work--I hope it goes more easily.