The Today Show
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Today is an American morning news and talk show airing weekday mornings on the NBC television network. It is the second-longest running American television series, behind Meet The Press, which also airs on NBC.
Today has been the highest-rated morning news and talk show in the United States since the week of December 11, 1995.
About the Show
Today first aired on January 14, 1952. It was the brainchild of Pat Weaver, who was then vice-president of NBC. Weaver was president of the company from 1953 to 1955 (during which time Today's late-night companion, The Tonight Show , premiered), and then served as chairman of the board for another year.Today was the first show of its genre when it signed on with original host Dave Garroway. The show blends national news headlines, in-depth interviews with newsmakers, lifestyle features, other light news and gimmicks (including the presence of the chimpanzee J. Fred Muggs as the show's mascot during the early years), and local news updates. It has spawned several other shows of a similar type, including ABC's Good Morning America, CBS' The Early Show. In other countries the format was copied - most notably in the United Kingdom with the BBC's Breakfast and ITV's Good Morning Britain and in Canada with Canada AM on CTV.
When Today started, it was seen live only in the Eastern and Central time zones, broadcasting three hours per morning but seen for only two hours in each time zone. Later, Today aired live for five hours a morning, but it was seen for only two consecutive hours in each of the four U.S. continental time zones. Since 1958, Today is tape-delayed for the different time zones. For many years it was a two-hour program from 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. in all time zones, until NBC expanded it to three hours (until 10:00 a.m. in all time zones) on October 2, 2000. In some markets (such as Rochester, New York, on WHEC-TV), the third hour of Today is tape-delayed by an hour and airs at 10 a.m.
Set
The show broadcasts from Studio 1A in Rockefeller Center, New York, just across the street from NBC headquarters at the GE Building. The studio is located right next to the street and many times the hosts do the weather or other events from outside. Today moved to the current streetside studio in June 1994, providing a link to the show's 1950s street-level set at the old RCA Exhibition Hall, also Rockefeller Plaza.
Since the premiere of the 1990s set, the morning shows of each of the major broadcast and cable-news networks has moved streetside -- including two of Today's Rockefeller Center neighbors, Fox News' Fox & Friends and CNN's American Morning. (In summer 2005, CNN reversed the trend, moving its morning show indoors and uptown to the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.) ABC's Good Morning America broadcasts from Times Square Studios in Times Square.
During the summer of 2006, Studio 1A will undergo renovations in preparation to broadcast in HD, which begins in September 2006. In the meantime, the program will broadcast from a temporary outdoor studio in Rockefeller Plaza,[1] the same set NBC used at the Olympic games in Athens and Torino.
Hosts
The principal hosts of the show have included:
- Dave Garroway (1952–1961)
- John Chancellor (1961–1962)
- Hugh Downs and Barbara Walters (1964–1971)
- Frank McGee and Walters (1971–1974)
- Jim Hartz and Walters (1974–1976)
- Tom Brokaw and Jane Pauley (1976–1981)
- Bryant Gumbel, Pauley, and Chris Wallace (1982)
- Gumbel and Pauley (1982–1989)
- Gumbel and Deborah Norville (1990)
- Gumbel, Norville, and Joe Garagiola (1990–1991)
- Gumbel, Katie Couric, and Garagiola (1991–1992)
- Gumbel and Couric (1992–1997)
- Couric and Matt Lauer (1997–2006)
- Lauer and varying substitutes (June–September 2006)
- Lauer and Meredith Vieira (effective September 13, 2006)
The show is currently hosted by Matt Lauer with Ann Curry, Natalie Morales and Campbell Brown alternating as substitutes through the summer of 2006. Al Roker does national weather updates, signaling the thirty-second cutaway to local forecasting with the outcue, "Here’s what’s happening in your neck of the woods." (If an affiliate has no weather update, a national summary of temperatures from Roker is shown instead.) Ann Curry reads news headlines. Natalie Morales is a national correspondent and co-host of the third hour of the program, Gene Shalit is the entertainment critic, and Peter Greenberg is the travel editor. Roker, Curry, and Morales interview guests and take part in other segments in addition to their weather and news duties during the 9 a.m. hour. Also, former Today weatherman Willard Scott sends birthday wishes to centenarians twice weekly and occasionally subs for Roker. NBC News White House correspondent David Gregory has recently been added as substitute host for Matt Lauer. Weekend Today host Campbell Brown often substitutes as well. Bob Dotson, Jamie Gangel, and Melissa Stark are National Correspondents for Today. Stark also acts as host of MSNBC Live. Kelly O'Donnell covers the day's events at the White House while Tim Russert (host of NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday mornings) offers commentary on current political news (MSNBC's Chris Matthews sometimes subs for Russert).
One popular monthly feature is Spanning the World with WNBC-TV sports anchor Len Berman. "Spanning" is a reel of odd and interesting sports highlights from the past month, with a recorded introduction and closing by Don Pardo. This segment also airs on WNBC-TV's 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts on a monthly basis. Jean Chatzky, editor-at-large for Money Magazine, provides weekly financial segments.
On April 5, 2006, Katie Couric announced that she would leave Today and NBC at the end of May to become the anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News. The following day, on April 6, NBC announced that Meredith Vieira would replace Couric as co-host of Today. Couric's chair will be filled by Ann Curry, Natalie Morales and Campbell Brown until Vieira takes over, which is tentatively scheduled for September 13, 2006.
News Anchors
News anchors have included the following:
- Jim Fleming (1952)
- Merrill Mueller (interim, 1952–1953)
- Frank Blair (1953–1975)
- Lew Wood (1975–1976)
- Floyd Kalber (1976–1979)
- Tony Guida (1979)
- John Palmer (1982–1989)
- Deborah Norville (1989)
- Faith Daniels (1990–1992)
- Margaret Larson (1992–1993)
- Matt Lauer (1994–1997)
- Ann Curry (1997–present)
Regular Panelists
Regular panelists on the program include the following:- Jack Lescoulie (1952–1965)
- Edwin Newman (1952–1984)
- Judith Crist (1964–1973)
- Joe Garagiola (1967–1973, 1991–1992)
- Gene Shalit (1973–present)
Brand Extensions
In 1999, NBC created two brand extensions for Today. One was Early Today, a newscast replacing NBC News at Sunrise that originally focused on business and financial news before switching to general news; it continues to air on many NBC affiliates. Also, Later Today, a talk show that was intended to air immediately following the then two-hour Today, was launched with hosts Jodi Applegate, Florence Henderson and Asha Blake. Sagging ratings for that show caused its cancellation in 2000 and replacement by a third hour of Today.Today in transition
Beginning in 2004, there were rumors that the hosts of Today were in the midst of a feud. Reports say that this was due to Katie Couric's prominence in the show and the general perception that she is the only person who can guarantee high ratings for the news program. Some report also suggest that Couric has become a bit too proud (some say obnoxious) because of this, and began to offend Lauer and the rest of the hosts. In addition, a few one-show victories by rival ABC program Good Morning America has fueled rumors of a feud, and some even went so far to suggest that Couric might be replaced in the near future. Couric has denied these reports, and says she has been rather hurt by them.Such a feud, if one existed, may have been a factor - but by no means the main factor - leading to speculation of Couric leaving Today for the anchor chair of the CBS Evening News, as well as a place on 60 Minutes, following her NBC contract expiry on May 31, 2006. While previously assumed that NBC would not allow outside negotiations before the end of April, this clause was apparently waived, and Couric officially announced the move on Today at 7:30 a.m. EDT, April 5, 2006—her fifteenth anniversary on the show.
While an announcement from CBS was expected later in the week, Lauer convinced Couric, on the air to formally reveal her destination: "Well I know it's the worst kept secret in America, but I'm going to be working on the CBS Evening News and 60 Minutes..." Katie's announcement was no secret; it was confirmed on news sources the previous evening.[link] There have been some doubts as to how Couric will do on CBS' evening newscast since people identify her as a morning anchor. Couric's last day on Today was May 31, the final day of her contract.
The day after Couric's announcement, Meredith Vieira announced on ABC's The View, where she currently serves as a host, that she will take over as Lauer's co-anchor in September, despite numerous in-house candidates such as Campbell Brown, Ann Curry and Natalie Morales. Meanwhile, Lauer's future on the program has been secured for the foreseeable future; he has signed through 2011, and has reportedly gotten a sizeable salary increase. [link]
On June 1, 2006 (the day after Couric's last day on air), it was announced that more changes were taking place on Today. Firstly, Ann Curry, Natalie Morales and Campbell Brown will take turns as temporary co-anchors alongside Lauer until Vieira starts in September. Additionally it was revealed that Today would be broadcasted from an outdoor studio located in Rockefeller Plaza, right across the street from Today
Weekend Today
The Sunday edition of NBC News' Today premiered on September 20, 1987. Five years later, on August 1, 1992, the Saturday edition made its debut, expanding the broadcast schedule of the Today franchise to seven days a week. The program is broadcast from Studio 1A in Rockefeller Plaza in New York.
The weekend broadcasts continue the Today tradition of covering breaking news, interviewing newsmakers, reporting on a variety of popular-culture and human-interest stories, covering health and finance issues and presenting the latest weather reports. In addition, the show offers visitors to New York City a chance to observe firsthand the workings of a live television broadcast with its windowed studio on Rockefeller Plaza. Interaction with the crowd outside the studio is a major part of the program.
Weekend editions are tailored to the priorities and interests of weekend viewers—offering special series such as Saturday Today on the Plaza, featuring live performances by the biggest names in music and Broadway outside the studio throughout the summer.
Lyne Pitts is the executive producer of Weekend Today.
Weekend Today is currently hosted by Lester Holt and Campbell Brown with weather reports from Janice Huff on Saturdays and Sean McLaughlin on Sundays. MSNBC's Alison Stewart and Kristine Johnson, Today Show correspondent Melissa Stark, CNBC's Carl Quintanilla and Maria Bartiromo, and NBC's Michelle Kosinski and Lisa Daniels report the daily news headlines from the newsdesk.
The program is watched by more viewers than ABC's Good Morning America Weekend Edition and CBS's Saturday Early Show/CBS News Sunday Morning.
Hosts
Sunday Today hosts included:- Boyd Matson and Maria Shriver (1987–1988)
- Shriver and Garrick Utley (1988–1990)
- Utley and Mary Alice Williams (1990–1992)
- Scott Simon and Jackie Nespral (1992–1993)
- Nespral and Mike Schneider (1993–1995)
- Schneider and Giselle Fernandez (1995)
- Fernandez and Jack Ford (1995–1996)
- Ford and Jodi Applegate (1996–1999)
- Ford and Soledad O'Brien (1999)
- O'Brien and David Bloom (2000–2003)
- Campbell Brown and Lester Holt (2003–present)
Special Editions
The show airing on January 14, 2002 was a three-hour long celebration of the shows 50th anniversary. On September 11, 2002, the show was extended to six hours (broadcasting until 1 p.m. Eastern Time) for a special edition covering the anniversary of the terrorist attacks from one year earlier. The expansion of an episode is not at all unusual, usually for planned long-duration news events such as presidential inaugurations or elections. It could be argued that the first such expanded edition came on June 2, 1953, with the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Coverage that morning began at 5:30 a.m. EDT and wrapped at 9:00 a.m. EDT. Breaking news can also extend the show's hours: during the London bombings on July 7, 2005, Today remained on the air for six hours, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT.The show airing on May 31, 2006 was a three-hour long celebration of Katie Couric's run on the show.
During coverage of presidential inaugurations, the show broadcasts from the NBC studios in Washington.
On July 12, 2006, Matt Lauer traveled to St. Petersburg (Leningrad), Russia, airing his interview with Russian President, Vladimir Putin.
See also
- NBC News
- Good Morning America
- The Early Show
- Breakfast television
- The Today Show title cards
External links
- [The Today Show official site]
- [Today] at the Internet Movie Database
- [Weekend Today official site]
- [Today Top unofficial Today Show viewers forum]
- [Mercury News article re Couric's move]
- [NYT article re Couric's replacement]
- [Jump The Shark - The Today Show]
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