NEW YORK, N.Y. — Matt Lauer has been fired from his high profile role as host of “The Today Show,” according to a press release by the network.
Lauer, who had hosted the morning news show for more than 20 years, was terminated after a colleague complained about inappropriate sexual behavior toward her, NBC News chief Andrew Lack said in a memo published to the show’s website (https://www.today.com/video/matt-lauer-has-been-terminated-from-nbc-news-1105840707690).
According to the statement, although the colleague’s complaint was the first official allegation received by the network regarding Lauer’s behavior, show executives have cause to believe more allegations may soon surface.
“On Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” the memo reads.
Lack said the allegation against Lauer “represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards. As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment.”
“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,” the memo continued.
Lauer’s longtime “Today Show” co-host, Savannah Guthrie, confirmed the news to viewers on Wednesday morning. “All we can say is we are heartbroken; I’m heartbroken,” Guthrie said.
Describing Lauer as “a dear, dear friend,” Guthrie said she was “heartbroken for the brave colleague who came forward to tell her story.”
Calls for statement to Lauer’s publicist were met with “no comment at this time”.
thepatrioticblonde.com 