NBC Axes Curry From Today

All rumors and speculation were put to rest today as Ann Curry said goodbye to viewers after 15 years on the “Today Show.”

Curry broke down this morning on her final day as a regular “Today” show co-host. "This is not as I expected to ever leave this couch," Curry said.

Curry’s departure was confirmed to viewers on Thursday morning at 8:50 a.m., minutes before her shift ended. Her colleagues Al Roker, Matt Lauer, and Natalie Morales offered a fond memory of Curry.

The sendoff for Curry was a far cry from the past sendoffs, which dedicated entire episodes to Meredith Vieira and Katie Couric. The New York Times deemed this morning’s farewell as “a divorce more than anything else.”

The reason for her departure was early morning show ratings for “Today” were slipping while “Good Morning America” was gaining momentum. Ironically enough, after losing to “Good Morning America” in April and May, “Today” has won for four straight weeks in ratings. Some media critics found it difficult to believe that Curry should receive all the blame. Curry did co-host the show with Lauer. However, NBC did not believe that Lauer would be a source of the problem, so Curry took the blame for the rating drop. Other critics blamed a lack of chemistry between Curry and Lauer. This only became an issue recently, as Curry was with the program for 15 years.

This would not be the first time that NBC has ruined golden opportunities. Late night talk show host Conan O’Brien also encountered a situation similar to Curry’s. After Jay Leno stepped away from his show, O’Brien was offered the prized timeslot in late night television. Months later, O’Brien was forced out by NBC and the spot was later given back to Leno. Essentially, O’Brien and Curry are in the same predicament, hope to get the best job, get the job, and be pushed out by NBC.

NBC was awful at remaining confidential about who would be replacing Curry. The Huffington Post reported that NBC had offered the position to third-hour anchor Savannah Guthrie on Tuesday. Nothing has been confirmed as of today, but one can suspect that Guthrie will be the eventual successor since she filled in this morning in place of Curry.

The “Today” show won in the ratings every week since 1996. For Curry, a couple weeks of “Good Morning America” beating “Today” in the ratings cost her the dream job she always wanted.

“For all of you who saw me as a groundbreaker, I’m sorry I couldn’t carry the ball to the finish line, but, man, I did try,” Curry said while trying to hold back tears. And so to all of you who watch, thank you from the bottom of my heart for letting me touch yours.”

Curry’s new role will be NBC News National and International Correspondent/Anchor and “Today” Anchor at Large, effective immediately. Quite the lengthy title for a sad and unfortunate demotion.

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