When the Today show aired a montage celebrating the 25th anniversary of its iconic Manhattan studio last week, many viewers immediately noticed some of the show’s key—and controversial—past players were missing.
That wasn’t an accidental oversight.
Multiple sources told The Daily Beast that a producer on the show was directed by more senior management not to include footage of several former controversial key figures in the montage, including former longtime host Matt Lauer and host Megyn Kelly. But they also asked them not to include ex-hosts Ann Curry and Amy Robach, now an anchor of ABC 20/20.
Lauer left the show in disgrace after being accused of workplace misconduct. Kelly, who hosted her third hour from a different studio, departed the show almost a year before her contract was up after apologizing for inflammatory comments about blackface Halloween costumes.
But the deliberate omissions of Curry and Robach were slightly more complicated. Curry’s messy exit from NBC was capped by an infamously awkward on-screen interaction with Lauer, which happened in the same Today show studio celebrated by the montages. And in recent months, NBC has publicly pushed back on Curry’s claim that she told management about Lauer’s behavior.
A number of other former Today show personalities including Tamron Hall were also absent from the tribute, which focused mostly on the show’s more ubiquitous talent like Al Roker, Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Craig Melvin. A number of other early cast members made the cut, including Barbara Walters, Bryant Gumbel, and Katie Couric.
While Lauer’s absence may have prevented an awkward acknowledgment of his past with the company, it was also notable given that the show did include clips of longtime NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw, who was accused of sexual misconduct by former colleague Linda Vester.
NBC declined to comment for this story.
