NBC 'Today' Show Cast 2014: Network Says They're 'Committed' to Hosts Natalie Morales and Willie Geist, Denies Firing Them
NBC News said Wednesday that despite rumors, Natalie Morales and Willie Geist, hosts of the "Today" show, have not been fired.
Us Magazine reported that the two co-hosts were fired and might join CBS or ABC.
Deborah Turness, NBC News president, said the rumors are untrue.
"NBC's TODAY has the best anchor team in morning television," she wrote in a statement. "The entire TODAY show anchor team -- Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker, Natalie Morales, Willie Geist, Carson Daly, Tamron Hall, Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb -- are incredibly talented, valued and have our support. In response to the false rumors that have been circulated about our anchor team, NBC wants to be absolutely clear: The rumors are wrong -- period. This is the team we are committed to. And this is the team that our viewers turn to in the morning."
Former ESPN executive Jamie Horowitz was brought on the "Today" team as brand manager, Huffington Post reports. Just 10 weeks on the job, he was removed sparking rumors that NBC fired him and cut back on other staff as well, according to The New York Times.
Turness told NBC News staff in a memo that she and Horowitz decided together that this was not the right fit for him, Fox News Latino reports. Now, the network is looking for a new executive to oversee the show.
Richard Wald, a former network news executive now teaching at Columbia University said finding the right fit for the job has to do with the person's attitude.
"You have to have the sense that you're good at what you do," he told Huffington Post. "That requires a bit of ego. The people who are looking at this kind of work say, 'I won't make those mistakes. I'll be successful.'"
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