`Today' Show Host Matt Lauer Fired Over Alleged Misconduct

(Bloomberg) -- “Today” show co-host Matt Lauer was fired after an accusation of sexual misconduct, making him the latest to join a growing list of well-known film and TV personalities caught up in allegations of harassment in the news and entertainment industry.

NBC said it was informed about inappropriate sexual behavior by Lauer, 59, after a colleague complained, according to a memo from NBC News Chairman Andy Lack that was read on air during the “Today” show on Wednesday.

“It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards,” Lack said in the statement. “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.”

Lauer’s firing puts an end to what had been a storied career at NBC, a subsidiary of Comcast Corp., while also stripping the broadcast network of one its best-known news stars. His departure throws into turmoil one of NBC’s most profitable shows just months before the Winter Olympics. NBC’s news division is still trying to move on from a previous scandal two years ago when anchor Brian Williams embellished his portrayal of his reporting in Iraq.

A representative for Lauer declined to comment.

Decades-Long Career

Lauer’s career with NBC started in 1992 when he took a co-anchor role with the local WNBC morning show “Today in New York.” In 1997, he was named co-anchor of the “Today” show when Bryant Gumbel left. Over the next two decades, Lauer has interviewed some of the world’s most influential newsmakers, ranging from Hollywood stars to foreign heads of state to ordinary Americans caught up in major world events.

The “Today” show has long dominated the morning news landscape. It generated about $508 million in advertising revenue last year, according to the research firm Kantar Media. ABC’s "Good Morning America" drew about $402 million and CBS "This Morning" saw $177 million.

“Today” has been the top-rated morning show among 25-to-54-year olds, the key demographic for advertisers, for much of the past two years, though its audience is starting to decline. Total viewership for the program is down 10 percent year to date, according to Nielsen, and it has been eclipsed by ABC’s “Good Morning America” in total audience. NBC tried recently to boost ratings by adding former Fox News host Megyn Kelly.

Comcast shares rose 3.1 percent to $37.37 as of 10:04 a.m. in New York.

Last fall, Lauer extended his contract with NBC through 2018 for $20 million a year, according to the Hollywood Reporter. His departure comes just a few weeks after another morning show host, Charlie Rose, was dismissed by CBS amid sexual harassment allegations.

Trump Tweets

President Donald Trump, who has himself been accused of sexual harassment and infamously bragged about groping women in an audio tape that leaked during the run-up to the presidential election, was quick to tweet about the incident.

“Wow, Matt Lauer was just fired from NBC for ‘inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.’ But when will the top executives at NBC & Comcast be fired for putting out so much Fake News. Check out Andy’s Lack’s past!” Trump said in a Tweet.

Lack has had a long career in television news, including a several-year stint at Bloomberg LP. In a separate tweet, Trump also called on the firing of MSNBC President Phil Griffin and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough.

As a journalist, Lauer outlasted several co-hosts on the “Today” show. He reportedly had a tense relationship with his former co-host Ann Curry, who left in 2012 with a tearful goodbye.

During interviews he conducted for the 2016 presidential campaign, Lauer was criticized for spending much of his time with Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton focused on her use of a private email service, while failing to push Trump as hard on other topics.

Some of Lauer’s signature assignments included coverage of four Olympic games including the 2014 Winter Olympics when he substituted for Bob Costas, who was sidelined with an eye infection. He starred in a global travel feature series for the “Today” show called “Where in the World is Matt Lauer?”

“This is a sad morning here at ‘Today’ and at NBC News,” said Savannah Guthrie, Lauer’s co-anchor, after reading Lack’s statement on air. “We just learned this moments ago, just this morning. As I’m sure you can imagine, we are still processing all of this. I will tell you, right now we do not know more than what we just shared with you.”

--With assistance from Erin Zlomek and Bruce Rule

To contact the reporters on this story: Drew Armstrong in New York at darmstrong17@bloomberg.net, Gerry Smith in New York at gsmith233@bloomberg.net, Scott Moritz in New York at smoritz6@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Crayton Harrison at tharrison5@bloomberg.net, Jessica Brice, Bruce Rule

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