It was less than two months ago that Matt Lauer was fired from NBC's TODAY, after multiple accusations of sexual misconduct against the journalist.
"This is a sad morning at 'Today' and NBC News," co-anchor Savannah Guthrie said at the time. "As I'm sure you can understand, we are devastated."
Andrew Lack, NBC News Chairman, sent a company-wide memo at the time, saying "while it is the first complaint about his behavior in the over 20 years he's been at NBC News, we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident."
It was revealed that Lauer was accused of sexting female staffers, sending an explicit note to a woman on how she should use a sex toy, having sex with a married staff member until she passed out, and even had a button under his desk that would lock the door without having to get up.
Since his departure, one of the biggest questions left with NBC was who would fill Lauer's shoes. He had been with the network for 20 years, so his replacement would have to be equally as experienced and crowd-pleasing.
This morning, NBC announced who will be replacing Lauer, and it's a face that TODAY fans will recognize.
Andrew Lack sent out an email to staff members, informing them that Hoda Kotb would be replacing Lauer, co-anchoring the show with Savannah Guthrie.
"Over the past several weeks, Hoda has seamlessly stepped into the co-anchor role alongside Savannah, and the two have quickly hit the ground running," Lack said. "They have an undeniable connection with each other and most importantly, with viewers, a hallmark of TODAY. Hoda is, in a word, remarkable. She has the rare ability to share authentic and heartfelt moments in even the most difficult news circumstances. It's a tribute to her wide range and her innate curiosity."
This is us! #SavannahHodaTODAY pic.twitter.com/Xe2z6uygZe
— Savannah Guthrie (@SavannahGuthrie) January 2, 2018
Kotb will anchor the first two hours of TODAY with Guthrie, and continue to host the fourth hour with Kathie Lee Gifford. Joining NBC News in 1998, Kotb has often filled in on TODAY when need be, and became the official co-host of the fourth hour with Kathie Lee in 2008.
Guthrie and Kotb will be the first all-female morning show duo to host TODAY.
