Names and faces
NBC News opened the new year Tuesday by appointing Hoda Kotb as co-anchor of the Today show’s first two hours with Savannah Guthrie, replacing
Matt Lauer after his firing on sexual misconduct charges in late November. Kotb,
53, will continue to co-host the show’s fourth hour with Kathie Lee Gifford. It will be the first all-female team headlining Today in the show’s 65-year history.
Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts blazed that path for ABC’s Good Morning America in the 2000s, but morning shows have traditionally paired a man and a woman as host. With an audience dominated by women in an era where news of badly behaving men is frequent, the Guthrie-Kotb pairing may be particularly timely. Today won’t be an all-female zone in its first half, however, with longtime weather forecaster Al Roker and correspondent Carson Daly as regulars. Megyn Kelly hosts the show’s third hour. Kotb has subbed for Lauer since the day he was fired and Today has won four straight weeks in the ratings, after having spent much of the past few years in second behind ABC. NBC News Chairman Andy Lack said in a memo to staff that Kotb has “seamlessly stepped” into the co-anchor role with her and Guthrie having “an undeniable connection with each other and most importantly, with viewers, a hallmark of ‘Today.’” After Guthrie made the announcement on air, Kotb, sitting beside her, told viewers: “I think we should send some medics to Alexandria, Va., where my mom has likely fainted.”
Country singer Carrie Underwood rang in 2018 by sharing more details about the injuries that she suffered after a fall that broke her wrist. In a blog post to fans on New Year’s Day, Underwood, 34, wrote that she suffered a facial injury that required 40-50 stitches and that she’s “not quite looking the same.” But, she said she’s grateful the injuries weren’t much worse, as well as for the people who have helped her since she fell on a set of steps at her Nashville, Tenn., home in November. A representative for Underwood revealed two months ago that the singer was hospitalized with a broken wrist and several cuts and bruises after taking a “hard fall on some steps,” but the facial injury was not addressed publicly until the blog post. Underwood also cautioned fans that she might not look the same when she’s ready to be seen on camera again. “I’m hoping that, by then, the differences are minimal, but, again, I just don’t know how it’s all going to end up.” Underwood also said she plans to be back in the recording studio next week.