Recently fired “Today” show host Matt Lauer allegedly assaulted a female staffer during NBC’s Sochi Olympics coverage in 2014, the New York Post reported on Wednesday.
Lauer’s alleged victim complained to the human resources department on Monday.
Savannah Guthrie announces Matt Lauer has been fired from NBC after a complaint of sexual harassment. pic.twitter.com/St9pG73r2H
— Greg Hogben (@MyDaughtersArmy) November 29, 2017
“This happened so quickly. She didn’t go to the media, she made a complaint to NBC’s human resources, and her evidence was so compelling that Matt was fired on Tuesday night. The victim says she has evidence that this has also happened to other women, but so far we don’t have evidence of that,” a source told the Post.
The move to fire Lauer was made on Tuesday by NBC News chief Andy Lack.
There were rumors that several media outlets were working on stories about his alleged misconduct. The New York Times had been investigating him for several weeks, CNN reported.
Lauer’s termination comes about week after CBS News fired Charlie Rose, one of its own morning anchors, after women accused the “CBS This Morning” co-host of sexual misconduct.
Only recently Savannah Guthrie described #MattLauer as a sweet, cuddly BIG BABY https://t.co/B4TSbOLtsA
— Dinesh D'Souza (@DineshDSouza) November 29, 2017
Lauer, 59, was named a co-host on “Today” in 1997 and is reportedly being paid $25 million per year.
“We were both woken up with the news kind of predawn,” “Today” co-host Hoda Kotb said on Wednesday morning. “And we’re trying to process it and make sense of it. And it will take some time for that.”
Lack’s statement was published by CNN:
Dear Colleagues,
On Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer. It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards. As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment. While it is the first complaint about his behavior in the over twenty years he’s been at NBC News, we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident.
Our highest priority is to create a workplace environment where everyone feels safe and protected, and to ensure that any actions that run counter to our core values are met with consequences, no matter who the offender.
We are deeply saddened by this turn of events. But we will face it together as a news organization — and do it in as transparent a manner as we can. To that end, Noah and I will be meeting with as many of you as possible throughout the day today to answer your questions.
Andy
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