NBC has fired Matt Lauer, its leading anchor on the Today show, due to sexual harassment allegations. From The New York Times:
“On Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” Andrew Lack, the NBC News president, said in the memo.He said the allegation against Mr. 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 firing occurred after Lauer attended a long meeting with the alleged victim and her lawyer, who proceeded to tell those in charge at NBC what happened. From Fox News:
“Over the course of several hours, my client detailed egregious acts of sexual harassment and misconduct by Mr. Lauer,” Ari Wilkenfeld of Wilkenfeld, Herendeen & Atkinson told Fox News in an emailed statement. “In fewer than than 35 hours, NBC investigated and removed Mr. Lauer…It is our hope that NBC will continue to do what it can to repair the damage done to my client—their employee—and any other women who may come forward.”
A source has told The New York Post that Lauer allegedly assaulted a female staffer during the Olympics:
The staffer, who has not been named and wishes to remain anonymous, complained to NBC bosses yesterday, prompting NBC News bosses to move fast and fire him.A source told Page Six, “An NBC staffer come forward with a claim that Matt sexually assaulted her at the Olympics. There have been rumors about Matt having affairs with subordinates at NBC for years, but those were believed to be consensual. This incident in Rio was not.”Another source tells us that the decision to fire Lauer was made late last night by NBC News chairman Andy Lack.
Savannah Guthrie broke the news on the Today Show:
From Fox News:
An emotional Guthrie admitted “we just learned this moments ago” and said the “Today” team is “devastated and we are still processing all of this.””All we can say is that we are heartbroken. I’m heartbroken for Matt. He is my dear, dear friend and my partner and he is beloved by many, many people here. And I’m heartbroken for the brave colleague who came forward to tell her story and any other women who have their own stories to tell.”
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