Hoda Kotb Is Leaving the Today Show
On Thursday, Hoda Kotb announced that she’s stepping down from her role as co-anchor of NBC News’ Today show after nearly two decades.
During a tear-filled segment, Kotb, who turned 60 in August, sat with five of her onscreen colleagues and explained her decision to leave the show. “I realized it was time for me to turn the page at 60 and to try something new,” she said, describing her recent birthday as “the top of the wave.” “I decided that this is the right time for me to move on,” she said, adding, “I had my kiddos late in life, and I was thinking that they deserve a bigger piece of my time pie.”
Kotb has worked at NBC News since 1998, when she was hired as a correspondent for Dateline. She started co-hosting Today’s fourth-hour weekday-morning broadcast in 2007, and over the next decade, she and co-host Kathie Lee Gifford developed a knack for goofy morning-show antics. In 2018, Kotb also became Today’s co-anchor with Savannah Guthrie, replacing Matt Lauer after he was terminated following accusations of sexual misconduct.
“You don’t leave family,” said Kotb, who will continue to host Today alongside Guthrie through the beginning of next year, “so I’m gonna be haunting you in your lives for a long, long time.” She said she plans to “stay in the NBC family” going forward, though she didn’t specify what her role will be.
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