Savannah Guthrie Subs for Lester Holt, Who Subs for Brian Williams on ‘NBC Nightly News’

Savannah Guthrie filled in for Lester Holt on NBC Nightly News Monday, as Holt had a ‘family emergency’ he was called away to handle. Lester Holt has been named as the substitute anchor fo...
Savannah Guthrie Subs for Lester Holt, Who Subs for Brian Williams on ‘NBC Nightly News’
Written by Kimberly Ripley
  • Savannah Guthrie filled in for Lester Holt on NBC Nightly News Monday, as Holt had a ‘family emergency’ he was called away to handle. Lester Holt has been named as the substitute anchor for Brian Williams, who was suspended by the network for six months, pending an investigation into his habit of not-quite-telling the truth.

    It was speculated back when the whole Brian Williams debacle reared its ugly head that Savannah Guthrie might be the one to fill in for him at the NBC Nightly News desk, but her contract with the Today show won’t allow that. She is under contract for three more years with the morning news show.

    Lester Holt, in the meantime, has done an impressive job of filling in for Brian Williams–something he had, of course, done on several occasions prior to Williams’s suspension. In addition, Holt is keeping the NBC Nightly News ratings high enough to surpass those of all the other networks.

    Savannah Guthrie certainly has the capability to have subbed on a regular basis for Brian Williams. Do you think she would have kept those ratings high, however? CBS thought they were going to win the ratings war when they put Katie Couric behind their evening news desk, and that didn’t work out the way they’d planned.

    Do you think Savannah Guthrie could do the job–and maintain the ratings–that Lester Holt is achieving thus far in Brian Williams’s seat?

    It is uncertain thus far what Lester Holt’s family emergency is, or even if he will return to NBC Nightly News on Tuesday. It’s unlikely Savannah Guthrie will sub for him again, however, as she will have spent Tuesday on the Today show. Not only does that mean she has put in many hours since Monday at the crack of dawn, but she also has a baby at home–little Vale–awaiting that precious time with Mom.

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