TVNewsJunkie15

So Matt Lauer inadvertently gave out Savannah's email address. He thought that type of thing was public knowledge because he got emails from viewers and jokingly gave out here. I was a bit surprised that her (and other higher profile journalists) work related email didn't vary from the standard template of [email protected].

I got the feeling it was Savannah Private Non-work Email Address Matt accidentally gave out not her NBC Email Address which is public pretty much and is the Professional Email Address everyone who work at NBC has.

I sent Al a Email once several years ago (using the NBC one) and got a reply back.

Credibility for being a morning show host has gone down the drain. It does not mean much anymore to become a host of the morning show. They got Carson Daly who promoted music videos as his claim to fame and now he is reporting news about heads of state. Lauer has not been high standard either, compared to Bryant Gumbel he is a lightweight.

This has been the same discussion people were having back in 2013 when people assumed that Matt Lauer is not going renew his contract. There have constant back and forths on who can take his spot. People thought Willie Geist would be the logical choice but his wooden personality mighty not work. Today believes that bigger name might mean bigger ratings. Their main focus is go back to being a more infotainment show, their main focus is to compete with GMA. This was their main picks outside of NBC

 

Anderson Cooper- I doubt that he would want to be tied to those crazy hours and he is a staple at CNN and contributes to 60 Minutes.

Josh Elliot-- they pulled him from ABC with promises that he could do the Today show but all fell to the waste side

Don Lemon-- He would make sense and he has the personality to do the entertainment part of the show.

David Gregory--highly doubt NBC would want him back but was well liked by viewers anytime he would fill in.

Ryan Seacrest-- NBC showed interest and he is part of the NBC Universal family, and his contract with American Idol is going to expire . His name recognition makes him alluring for NBC.

Very Interesting. The only (In my opinion) real qualified person at NBC/MSNBC who can take over for Matt right now is Willie. David Gregory would have been a good choice at one time and for awhile there he was the forerunner to take over for Matt. He work very well with Ann Curry and Meredith Vieira. If NBC had only known what would happen 6 Months after they let Gregory go I tihnk they would have kept him in a Contract (sort of like what they did with Ann) longer.

Josh Elliott just left for CBS. It really too bad they could not have find anything for him to really to do. originally he was brought as a as a Correspondent for NBC Sports and was prepared to go to Rio for the Olympics (in fact one of his biggest dreams was to cover the Olympics and is why he went to NBC when he got the chance) and so until then he did Sports stuff then and now but was not getting any major Screen Time or Sports events and so he faded slowly.

At the time in April 2014 It was widely speculated that he was in the running to take over for Matt whenever he decided to leave. Over time he began to do Sports Stories for TODAY Show which by Late Summer 2014 then become about once a week. Then Jamie Horowitz became SVP and Josh began filling in for Natalie that September. Then in October Jamie hatched a plan to fire everyone on the show except for Matt and Hoda. He was gonna replace Savannah with Hoda and Natalie with Josh. He was going to add Samantha Ponder and Brooke Anderson to the show. he planned to replace Matt with Josh within 2 Years.

Horowitz in his short 2 1/2 Months (and he was not even set to begin officially until December!) caused a lot of problems, chaos, mayhem, drama, back fighting, infighting, feuds and resentment behind the scenes. He then began to leak false stories (And other Stories to of the impending plan) to the press and pitted Anchors and Producer against each other. As one person describe it: "He walk in and threw a bomb and blew up the place". The morale during that time was very low. He would throw Producers and Anchors under the bus when they were not around. It was a extremely toxic environment

He is responsible for the feuding between Natalie and Tamron.

Soon in November Savannah, Willie and Natalie all hearing about their possible demotion went to Matt (who a couple weeks earlier told Burke he was covered about Horowitz) voicing Concerns and about what he was planning. Matt then went to Deborah Turness who then (among a Anchor revolt) put the kibosh on the plan and fired Jamie Horowitz.

There went out the window the possibly of Josh taking over for Matt.

Not surprise about Erica. I predicted Willie would join Weekend TODAY Show last year when Brian was let go at Nightly News and Lester got that Job. Erica is just not strong enough to be lead anchor.

There is now a story out there that Matt is leaning towards not renewing his contract at the end of the year: http://www.showbiz411.com/2016/03/02/today-show-insiders-matt-lauer-likely-to-leave-when-contract-is-up-this-year

Just in time for the Inauguration don't you say? It perfect opportunity to introduce a New Team. Willie has been filling in for Matt in recent weeks more then Carson so i could be he will be hosting Weekend TODAY until January.

But then what happens after that with Weekend TODAY?

I caught a show with Paula moderating and actually enjoyed her in that role. But I agree, if Whoopi goes it's Joy's job to lose.

 

Also of note, Meredith will have more time on her hands come May and Elisabeth has more time as of two months ago, although I think both are under contract with their respective networks.

Meredith will be hosting the Rio Olympics in August and taking part in NBC coverage including contributing to TODAY Show so in May she will be preparing for The Olympics. Her talk show is canclled but she contracted with NBC News but I am not sure when that expires.

I wonder how much longer Robin will stick around at GMA? and who would be her replacement? I think she has another year or left. I could see her maybe leaving at the end of her contract but would not be surprise if she renewed her Contract. Prior to her MDS diagnostic she may have left in 2013 or 2017 however after her MDS battle I think that changed and could see her being there for several more years (at least 2020) .

I could see Amy replacing Robin when ever she leave eventually and I think they are grooming Amy for Anchor Chair. That would be my top pick. I know some are so arid they will choose Lara but at the end of the day I tihnk they would choose Amy over Lara when it comes down to it especially when it would be permanent.

To be fair I have only heard 2 or 3 people say they should get rid of George. But other then that I have never heard many complains about him. Someone on TVNewser said they should bring Josh back to GMA and have him replace George. but that not happening.

But majority of people say Lara the problem. The few times I have watch GMA over last few years dhe did get on my nerves a bit and I can see where people coming from.

ABC is probably a little nervous right now.

Some say they should replace is George many say Lara.

Yes my Uncle from Iowa and he and his family are far from being Hillbillies

Think you answered your own question... Probably research/focus groups told them showcasing Matt & Savannah together was a better start for the show.

Yes. Matt and Savannah work good together. The Chemistry seem to have gotten a lot better (not that it was ever bad) some Savannah back from Maternity Leave.

I have to say they especially make a great team when covering major breaking stories like Sandy Hook, Boston Marathon Bombing and Paris Attacks. I cringe at the thought of having to endure watching Matt and Ann anchor those major breaking news together.

Sam left the weather channel so he not at NBC anymore. He was on CBS This Morning about a month ago so it could be okay

Meredith Show may get ax next year. It to bad she won't ever come back to TODAY Show full time. That would be great but it won't happen.

I do like the current team but sometime I yearn for the old days with Matt, Meredith, Al and Ann. That was a Great Team

Had Meredith not left I think they would all still be together today.

Lester is out sick today so Brian will be anchoring NBC News Special a Report this afternoon.

But don't expect Brian to fill in on Nightly as he banned from appearing on broadcast

TODAY came within 185,000 Viewers of GMA in Total viewers Week of November 9-13th (The closest since 2012) and has now won over Two Months in age 25-45 Demo. That is very good news and hopefully they can can keep the momentum going into next year with the Summer Olympics. In 2014 they did not have momentum going into the Olympics.

http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/morning-show-ratings-week-of-nov-9/277945

Watching GMA clips from late 2009 and 2010 interests to see how George has loosen up a little since then. I remember The first couple years he would not even take part in Halloween shows and would be off that day.

It wasn't until Josh and Lara came on.

1. He's in France.

2. He wasn't going to be there, anyway, since CNN doesn't give a shit. NBC is obviously not as much of a dick on such occasions.

Okay I didn't know he was in France. Thanks

So Chris Cuomo is not going to be there tomorrow. To bad I wonder why? Almost every person who been on GMA in last 40 Years is going to be there.

That discussion between George and Charlie was Fascinating indeed. Very candid

The story about Charles and Diana wedding. I am a monarchist and follow the BRF so I found it very interesting

Wow INTERESTING!! The story Joan just told!

David no Charlie joking about Joan being their Girl was pretty funny

I wonder if Meredith, Katie and Savannah have those arguments about Matt lol

I am a Today Show Viewer but I am loving this GMA 40 for 40. I like watching Any especially.

Great thing is if there any major breaking News tonight and tomorrow night they will be right on top of it and one of the first

I always thought Amy Robach was going to get the Today show spot then Savannah but NBC liked Savannah and maybe impressed with her resume. When Ann Curry debacle happened, they wanted a female anchor who can mirror Matt Lauer and not afraid to stand up to him.They also wanted a cutesy Katie Couric clone which Savannah Guthrie is.

 

Natalie has hindered her promotional chances when stories about her affair with Matt Lauer is still circulating. As long as Matt is still married, the wife will have a say over what happens and Natalie will continue to be the newsreader.

 

This never came out but one insider said Lester actually thought about leaving Today show and possibly NBC because he was not elevating anywhere.It was written in his contract that he could leave NBC if he did not get the top spot of any major NBC show. He was doing the dead end weekend job for 12 years and wanted a change in his schedule. He was the only guy at NBC who paid his dues , working hard and not getting anything to show for it.

 

I speculate that NBC panicked over Lester possibly leaving, and circumstances with Brian Williams embellishments was a blessing in disguise for NBC to keep Lester at the network.

 

If Lester did leave, it would have been an shell shock/nightmare for NBC.If NBC is smart they will do whatever they can to keep Lester Holt content and that includes bumping up his salary cause he is NBC's saving grace. He was the only guy at the network to insiders that never had an ego and never brought drama with him to the network.

You should read Amy Robach book she released back in September about her battle with breast cancer.

She talk quit a bit and very openly in the book about why she left Weekend TODAY Show and NBC back in 2012. She doesn't hold back much.

She was very unhappy in her last couple years there.

She was going through a lot of stuff at the time (Stress along with anxiety attacks and other personal things and at one point she had a doctor appointment in early spring of 2012 where she found out her heart was damaged) and said how for the last few years she was not feeling the love anymore at NBC like they (the executives high up not her co-workers. she was still very much respected and love when it came TODAY Show staff) really did not want her there anymore. Her career has hit a dead end and she was not really going anywhere. she been doing Saturday TODAY for 4 1/2 Years. She had until 2010 been filling in for Meredith, Brian, Ann and Natalie but suddenly the calls started coming less and less and then eventually they just stop. She was told by doctors she needed to slow down with working. in 2012 her contract was up soon but she was not hearing at all from NBC about renewal and her agent was not getting any calls and that made her worried.

She admit that she wanted to move up to Weekday TODAY when Meredith announced she was leaving. She wanted the Third Hour co-hosting job on the Weekday Show. she thought (And says it was) her!

When Savannah got the Third Hour Job job she then felt it was time for her to leave. And so she joined ABC. She felt like she had to last chance. This was before the whole Ann curry tihng. Had she knew what was about to happen who knows if she would have stayed or not but when Amy left it made room for Tamron.

I should say she has no animosity for Savannah whatsoever. Just thought I should point that out. she doesn't blame her at all. She does still seem to have some bad blood towards NBC 9and probably rightfully so)

But then after awhile at ABC she also started to feel like they were not doing much with her anymore especially after Robin came back to GMA full time. they then kept promising her that they had something planned for her.

Anyway it was very interesting read. I was surprise at how much details she went into, a Great book overall.

But the same has happened to other Weekend Anchors including Jodi Applegate, Campbell brown, Soledad O'Brien and Maria Shriver. The only weekend Co-anchor who ever got promoted to weekday show was Katie Couric.

Today Show moved closer to GMA Last week in Total Viewers and won one again in Age 25-54 Demo. It largest Age Gap with GMA since 2013

Jenna Wolf leaving NBC

http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/jenna-wolfe-leaving-nbc/276740

Well Natalie Contract expire in a year and as much as I hope she doesn't leave It does seem more likely she well. She been a valuable ember of TODAY for nearly a decade.

If NBC really does want to get rid of her then (and let renumber Morning Shows like to make change near the end of the year then they do in the middle or early on) then why not wait until ger Contract runs out a year from now?

But if Natalie is leaving on her own in order to get away from Tamron then I really don't blame her. But for the moment it just our speculation though it been written that Hoda could replace Natalie but that back when it was not sure if Lester would keep his Dateline Job.

But I would have Hoda or Sheinelle then Tamron. And Savannah obviously going to be there for many years to come.

I guess we will have to wait and see what happens. It just very cornering. And hen they start use to them ls like that it usually a good sign. But then we should take what the producers say with a grain of salt.