As her “Today” family dubbed her final day, “It’s a Hoda-bration!”
Hoda Kotb was fêted on Friday during her last day hosting “Today” after 17 years at the show. Kotb announced her departure in Sept. 2024, citing wanting to spend more time with her two daughters. She’s expected to continue to contribute to the show, and NBC News overall, after her departure.
At the top of the 7 am ET hour, a supercut of the morning’s news stories — including a tease of Kotb’s on-air celebration — left her and her co-anchor Savannah Guthrie near tears early in the broadcast. The two anchors were hand-in-hand after the intro, with Kotb saying, “One last time, let’s do this.”
Additionally, the crowd outside “Today” was filled with people holding signs saying goodbye to Kotb, including, “Thank you Hoda! We’ll miss you!” and “Blessed by Hoda!” Other NBC News personalities like Keith Morrison and Maria Shriver also paid tribute to Kotb early in the broadcast.
Kotb joined NBC News in 1998 and hopped aboard “Today” as the first host of its fourth-hour segment in Sept. 2007. The segment gained cultural ubiquity once she was joined by co-host Kathie Lee Gifford in April 2008. The duo’s breezy energy and love of wine was a winning formula for the show and lasted until Gifford’s departure in 2019. Gifford was replaced by Jenna Bush Hager, who has hosted alongside Kotb ever since.
Beyond her fourth-hour duties, Kotb was elevated to co-anchor of “Today” alongside Guthrie in Jan. 2018, in the wake of Matt Lauer’s termination for “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.”
The celebratory mood was somewhat dampened by a heartbreaking and busy news day, including continued coverage of the L.A. fires, a massive winter storm hitting the south and Trump’s impending sentencing on felony charges.
