NBC News’ Lester Holt announced that he will be stepping down as anchor of “NBC Nightly News” after 10 years.
“A smile comes to my face when I think that with Nightly News, and Dateline, I have now anchored two of the most successful and iconic television news programs in broadcast history,” Holt wrote in a memo to staffers. “As a 20-year-old radio reporter on the police beat chasing breaking news around San Francisco, I could never have imagined my career path would unfold in the way it has. What an amazing ride.”
Holt will continue with the network on “Dateline.”
Janelle Rodriguez, the executive vice president of programming for NBC News, said Holt has “led the network during some of the country’s most fraught and challenging times in the past decade. Quite simply, Lester is the beating heart of this news organization.”
News of Holt’s shift within the network follows MSNBC pulling Joy Reid’s show while several other NBC anchors have announced shifts within the network.
Anchor Chuck Todd recently announced he was leaving the network. The former “Meet The Press” moderator said in a memo to staff, “There’s never a perfect time to leave a place that’s been a professional home for so long, but I’m pretty excited about a few new projects that are on the cusp of going from ‘pie in the sky’ to ‘near reality.’ So I’m grateful for the chance to get a jump start on my next chapter during this important moment.”
Andrea Mitchell also announced her departure as host of “Andrea Mitchell Reports.”
