Matt Lauer On Ann Curry: Transition ‘Clearly Did Not Help Us’

Matt Lauer spoke about Ann Curry’s exit from The Today Show during a recent interview. The pair used to be co-hosts on the show, until Curry was publicly pushed out of the job after just one year.

Lauer blamed the station’s brass for Curry’s dismissal, which he admitted was not handled very well by the station. Matt Lauer admitted:

“I don’t think the show and the network handled the transition well. You don’t have to be Einstein to know that… It clearly did not help us. We were seen as a family, and we didn’t handle a family matter well.”

Unfortunately, there was no going back. Several groups criticized Matt Lauer for Ann Curry’s dismissal, saying that it was he who wanted his co-host to leave. Insiders claim that the couple struggled to find chemistry that would help the show’s poor ratings.

Chemistry was never a problem for Lauer and previous co-hosts Katie Couric and Meredith Viera. Lauer claimed in the interview that he was the one who put off Curry’s exit and also counseled her to get an agent ahead of the impending dismissal.

The interview, published in The Daily Beast, could be seen as an effort to lift some of the blame off of Matt Lauer following Ann Curry’s ouster. Lauer’s popularity immediately dropped and people even yelled at him on the streets. NBC executives have been trying to shift the blame from Lauer, saying that he warned Curry’s firing would be a “disaster.”

http://youtu.be/LmPLjYJr3AQ

Steve Capus, the former president of NBC News, also tried to defend his long-time colleague, saying, “He was quietly and publicly a supporter of Ann’s throughout the entire process.” Katie Couric was one who spoke about Ann Curry’s last day on The Today Show. The co-host cried when announcing her departure, which had been rumored for a few days prior.

Couric made a show of support for her former co-worker by saying, “It really broke my heart this morning to see Ann, because I know she’s suffering and is feeling a lot of pain with this transition, and I know that it’s really hard for everyone on the show.”

Do you think that Matt Lauer’s discussion on Ann Curry’s ouster from The Today Show is sincere?