Matt Lauer’s wife, Annette Roque, is allegedly now preparing for divorce, and Matt’s latest admission will probably only throw more fuel onto the fire. The fired Today Show anchor has admitted to performing “sexual activity” with an NBC intern, and an investigation has concluded that he was engaged in “inappropriate sexual behavior” with three other staffers.
After six months, the Matt Lauer investigation is complete and NBC News has released an internal report. According to the Daily Mail , the report reveals that a “complainant alleged that Matt Lauer had engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace with her on several occasions in 2014.” During a subsequent interview, Lauer “admitted to engaging in sexual activity with the complainant.” About a week later, NBC News determined that Lauer’s conduct violated company policy and fired the former Today Show host.
Shortly after Lauer was fired on November 28, 2017, three more women came forward with similar complaints. The report says that NBC News received allegations that Lauer had engaged in “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace with them in 2000, 2001, and 2007, respectively.”
One of the women said that Lauer put his hand on her thigh and made a sexual comment. It’s also said that “Lauer frequently engaged in sexual banter or joking in open working environments with other employees present.”
“The last few months have been extraordinarily difficult, with our dedicated journalists doing some of our best work ever while we endured a painful period in the spotlight including a thorough and deserved examination,” said NBC Universal Chairman Andy Lack in a memo that was attached to the Laurer investigation report. “This has been felt by everyone in the organization, most importantly several of our colleagues who were deeply affected. I admire their bravery and am profoundly grateful for their candor.”
Besides seeking additional complaints, the Lauer investigation was intended to discover whether anyone in a position of authority within NBC News knew about inappropriate workplace behavior by Lauer prior to November 27, 2017. The network staff received the findings on Wednesday, and it’s claimed that none of the NBC leadership received any complaints prior to the previously stated date.
This determination by the investigation seems to conflict with public statements by Ann Curry, who came forward in 2012 and said that a woman confided to her that Lauer had sexually harassed her. Curry told NBC management at the time that “they should be concerned about Lauer’s behavior toward women,” reads the report.
A footnote regarding Curry’s allegations discussed the issue in this manner.
“In a discussion with the investigation team, Curry confirmed that she did not disclose to anyone in management that she had received a specific complaint. Curry declined to share with the investigation team the identity of anyone in management with whom she spoke at the time or the identity of the woman who came to her with a complaint about Lauer… The members of NBC News and Today Show leadership at the time with whom we spoke denied having any such conversation with Curry.”
Will Annette Roque Divorce Matt Lauer Now Over The Old Affair?
The woman who engaged in sexual activity with Matt Lauer, Addie Collins Zinone, says she had a month-long affair with the fired Today Show host. Zinone says the sex was consensual but due to the “power dynamics” at work, she later regretted it. She said the affair started with awkward instant messages and a one-on-one lunch. After eating, Lauer suggested that they meet in his dressing room and that’s where the first sexual encounter occurred.
“I realize that sounds very naive and silly of me because I walked over there to do that. In that moment, I didn’t have anybody to sort of share my fears and confusion with, except for him. What am I going to say to people? This just happened,” Zinone said.
The first sexual encounter lasted about 10 minutes, but Zinone says the last time they had sex in a bathroom at a convention center. The sexual relationship lasted a month and only ended because Zinone left to start a new job in West Virginia as she had been planning to do before the affair began.
According to People , Matt Lauer’s wife Annette is “barely speaking” to him at this time. They have both been spotted without their wedding rings, but they continue to live together in the same household. An unnamed source claims that Lauer is “fighting to save the marriage,” and he does not want his wife to divorce him.
However, near the end of April, another insider claimed that Annette and Matt were “preparing for divorce.”
“He is truly devastated and wants to make up for anything he has done to hurt people,” that source said. “But the damage in his marriage can’t be fixed, and each would be better off to move on. They know this, but the kids are important to both of them.”