The Today Show

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For other uses, see Today Show (disambiguation).
Today

Still from the Today open used since September 13, 2006
Genre news program, live action
Picture format 16:9 1080i HDTV
Running time 180 minutes (3 hours)
Creator(s) Sylvester L. Weaver Jr.
Starring Matt Lauer
(1994–present)
Meredith Vieira
(2006–present)
Al Roker
(1996–present)
Ann Curry
(1997–present)
Natalie Morales
(2006–present)
Country of origin Flag of United States United States
Original channel NBC
Original run January 14, 1952–present
No. of episodes 20,347 (as of November 17, 2006)

Today, commonly referred to as The Today Show to avoid ambiguity, is an American morning news and talk show airing weekday mornings on the NBC television network. It is the second-longest running American television series, behind Meet The Press, which also airs on NBC.

Today has been the highest-rated morning news and talk show in the United States since the week of December 11, 1995.

Contents

[edit] About The Today Show

The Today Show first aired on January 14, 1952. It was the brainchild of Pat Weaver, who was then vice-president of NBC. Weaver was president of the company from 1953 to 1955 (during which time Today's late-night companion, The Tonight Show , premiered), and then served as chairman of the board for another year. Pat Weaver is the father of actress Sigourney Weaver.

The Today Show was the first show of its genre when it signed on with original host Dave Garroway. The show blends national news headlines, in-depth interviews with newsmakers, lifestyle features, other light news and gimmicks (including the presence of the chimpanzee J. Fred Muggs as the show's mascot during the early years), and local news updates. It has spawned several other shows of a similar type, including ABC's Good Morning America, CBS' The Early Show. In other countries the format was copied - most notably in the United Kingdom with the BBC's Breakfast and ITV's Good Morning Britain and in Canada with Canada AM on CTV.

When The Today Show started, it was seen live only in the Eastern and Central time zones, broadcasting three hours per morning but seen for only two hours in each time zone. Later, The Today Show aired live for five hours a morning on Monday morning but it was seen for only two consecutive hours in each of the four U.S. continental time zones. Since 1958, The Today Show is tape-delayed for the different time zones. For many years it was a two-hour program from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. in all time zones except for Alaska, Hawaii and US Virgin Islands, until NBC expanded it to three hours (until 10:00 a.m. in all time zones) on October 2, 2000. In some markets (such as Boston, Massachusetts, on WHDH-TV), the third hour of The Today Show is tape-delayed by an hour and airs at 10 a.m.

[edit] Set

Lauer and Vieira during the opening segment of the show, September, 2006.
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Lauer and Vieira during the opening segment of the show, September, 2006.

The show broadcasts from Studio 1A in Rockefeller Center, New York, just across the street from NBC headquarters at the GE Building. The studio is located right next to the street and many times the hosts do the weather or other events from outside. The Today Show moved to the current streetside studio in June 1994, providing a link to the show's 1950s street-level set at the old RCA Exhibition Hall, also Rockefeller Plaza. In 2006 Studio 1A underwent a major renovation to prepare for High Defenition. On September 13th, 2006, the Today Show moved into its brand new set. The new studio is divided into five different parts on the lower level. It includes the interview area, the couch area, the news desk, the performance/interview/extra space area, and home base, which is where the anchors start the show. There is also an upstairs that will be home to Today's Kitchen. The blue backround that is seen in the opening of the show in home base moves up and down to allow a view of the outside from the home base.

Since the premiere of the 1990s set, the morning shows of each of the major broadcast and cable-news networks has moved streetside -- including two of The Today Show's Rockefeller Center neighbors, Fox News' Fox & Friends and CNN's American Morning. (In summer 2005, CNN reversed the trend, abandoning its street-level studio and moving upstairs in the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.) ABC's Good Morning America broadcasts from Times Square Studios.

Studio 1A went through renovations in preparation to broadcast in 1080i HD, which began on September 13, 2006. The program’s concerts are now broadcast in Dolby Digital 5.1-channel surround sound. After Couric's departure and while a new set was readied (Summer of 2006), the program was broadcast from a temporary outdoor studio in Rockefeller Plaza, the same set NBC used at the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece and Torino, Italy (see "The Today Show in transition" section below for more). [1] During the week of August 28, 2006, the show was moved to a tempoary location outside of Studio 1A because MTV was converting the Outdoor Studio into their Red Carpet booth for the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. A mock set was set up in Dateline's studio, also used during inclement weather. Also, they used a temporary outdoor set at 30 Rock. On September 4, 2006, the show returned to its Summer Studio, and finally, on September 13, 2006, they had a debut of their new HD studio.

[edit] Anchors

Al Roker during an outdoor cooking segment in Rockefeller Plaza.
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Al Roker during an outdoor cooking segment in Rockefeller Plaza.

The principal anchors of the show have included:

(*In 1963 Barbara Walters became a co-host without the official title. But in 1974 NBC officially designated her as the program's first female co-host.)[2]

The show is currently hosted by Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira. Al Roker does national weather updates, signaling the thirty-second cutaway to local forecasting with the outcue, "Here’s what’s happening in your neck of the woods." (If an affiliate has no weather update, there is no NBC affiliate in the area, or if viewers are watching the show internationally, a national summary of temperatures from Roker is shown instead.) Ann Curry reads news headlines. Natalie Morales is a national correspondent and co-host of the third hour of the program, Gene Shalit is the entertainment critic, and Peter Greenberg is the travel editor. Roker, Curry, and Morales interview guests and take part in other segments in addition to their weather and news duties during the 9 a.m. hour. Also, former Today Show weatherman Willard Scott sends birthday wishes to centenarians twice weekly and occasionally subs for Roker. NBC News White House correspondent David Gregory has recently been added as substitute host for Matt Lauer. Weekend Today host Campbell Brown often substitutes as well. Bob Dotson, Jamie Gangel, and Melissa Stark are National Correspondents for The Today Show. Kelly O'Donnell covers the day's events at the White House while Tim Russert (host of NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday mornings) offers commentary on current political news (MSNBC's Chris Matthews sometimes subs for Russert).

One popular monthly feature is Spanning the World with WNBC-TV sports anchor Len Berman. "Spanning" is a reel of odd and interesting sports highlights from the past month, with a recorded introduction and closing by Don Pardo. This segment also airs on WNBC-TV's 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts on a monthly basis. Jean Chatzky, editor-at-large for Money Magazine, provides weekly financial segments.

[edit] News Anchors

News anchors have included the following:

(*From 1979-1981, Jane Pauley and Tom Brokaw read the news headlines.)

[edit] Regular panelists

Regular panelists on the program include the following:

[edit] Brand extensions

The first brand extension was created in 1982. Early Today was conceived as a lead-in for The Today Show. It even had the same anchors, Bryant Gumbel and Jane Pauley. The program was conceived so local stations could carry the full hour or one of the two half-hours. After a year NBC cancelled the program, after concluding that the show was too similar to The Today Show. It was replaced by NBC News at Sunrise anchored by Connie Chung.

In 1999, NBC cancelled NBC News at Sunrise and created two brand extensions for The Today Show. One was Early Today (not to be confused with the earlier incarnation). Replacing NBC News at Sunrise, the program originally focused on business and financial news before switching to general news; it continues to air on many NBC affiliates. Also in the of fall 1999, Later Today, a talk show that was intended to air immediately following the then two-hour Today, was launched with hosts Jodi Applegate, Florence Henderson and Asha Blake. Sagging ratings for that show caused its cancellation in August 2000 and was replaced by a third hour of The Today Show that same year (October 2000).

[edit] The Today Show in transition

Beginning in 2004, there were rumors that the hosts of The Today Show were in the midst of a feud. Reports say that this was due to Katie Couric's prominence in the show and the general perception that she was the only person who can guarantee high ratings for the news program. Some report also suggest that Couric became a bit too proud (some say obnoxious) because of this, and began to offend Lauer and the rest of the hosts. In addition, a few one-show victories by rival ABC program Good Morning America has fueled rumors of a feud, and some even went so far to suggest that Couric might be replaced in the near future. Couric denied these reports and said she was rather hurt by them.

Such a feud, if one existed, may have been a factor - but by no means the main factor - leading to speculation of Couric leaving The Today Show for the anchor chair of the CBS Evening News, as well as a place on 60 Minutes, following her NBC contract expiry on May 31, 2006. While previously assumed that NBC would not allow outside negotiations before the end of April, this clause was apparently waived, and Couric officially announced the move on The Today Show at 7:30 a.m. EDT, April 5, 2006—her fifteenth anniversary on the show.

While an announcement from CBS was expected later in the week, Lauer convinced Couric to formally reveal her destination on the air: "Well I know it's the worst kept secret in America, but I'm going to be working on the CBS Evening News and 60 Minutes..." Katie's announcement was no secret; it was confirmed on news sources the previous evening.[2] There were some doubts as to how Couric would do on CBS' evening newscast since people identified her as a morning anchor. Couric's last day on The Today Show was May 31, the final day of her contract.

The day after Couric's announcement, Meredith Vieira announced on ABC's The View, where she then served as a host, that she would take over as Lauer's co-anchor, despite numerous in-house candidates such as Campbell Brown, Ann Curry and Natalie Morales. Meanwhile, Lauer's future on the program has been secured for the foreseeable future; he has signed through 2011, and has reportedly gotten a sizeable salary increase. [3]. Meredith and Matt began co-hosting together on September 13, 2006.

[edit] Theme music

Today Show host Dave Garroway selected Les Brown's Sentimental Journey as the program's first theme, used during the entire Garroway era from 1952 to 1961. In 1962, when Hugh Downs became host, Django Reinhardt's Melodie au Crepuscule was chosen as the new theme; it was replaced in 1963 by Misty, an instrumental ballad composed by Erroll Garner and performed by Bobby Hackett and John B. Seng. [4]

Misty served as The Today Show's theme until 1971, when NBC News correspondent Frank McGee joined the show. Composer Ray Ellis penned an entirely new instrumental theme entitled This is Today, a jazzy, up-tempo piece that served as the program's main theme until 1978. Because This is Today closely resembled the theme Day by Day from the musical Godspell, Ellis was successfully sued for copyright infringement and This is Today was revised. The second version of This is Today incorporated the familiar NBC chime signature (G-E-C) in a bright, appropriately sunny arrangement that was used until 1981, at the close of the Tom Brokaw-Jane Pauley era.[5] The G-E-C signature was also used throughout the program to introduce and conclude segments, usually in combination with the familiar Today Show sunburst.

By 1982, The Today Show had a new anchor, Bryant Gumbel, and a new version of Ellis' This is Today theme, a looser, more relaxed arrangement that continued to feature the NBC chimes in its melody. A shorter arrangement of This is Today was used for the show open (featuring a rotating globe and The Today Show sunburst) from 1983 to 1985. The main theme was used until 1985, and due to its popularity with viewers was resurrected as the show's secondary theme in January 1993.

U.S. morning television shows
currently on the air:
edit

1985 saw the end of the synthesizer era at NBC as composer John Williams wrote a series of themes for all NBC News programs, with a cut entitled The Mission serving as the principal theme for NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw. Williams also composed two themes for The Today Show: an opening fanfare for the program that was derived from the opening of The Mission; and a two-minute closing theme for the show entitled Scherzo for Today, a dramatic arrangement that made heavy use of strings and flutes. The new Today Show themes -- used in tandem with the show's new opening sequence featuring the Statue of Liberty and a new living room studio set -- gave the program a distinctly modern look and sound beginning in September 1985. A series of Williams-penned bumpers featuring the Mission signature were also used to open and close segments.

Scherzo for Today was used as the program's closing theme until 1990, and the Mission bumpers were used until 1993. (One of them could be heard as a station break lead-in on NBC's Meet The Press until 2004.) The Today Show opening fanfare has opened the program ever since, with two exceptions. In the summer of 1994, to mark the debut of Studio 1A, the Williams-penned fanfare was replaced by another opening theme, but the Williams theme returned shortly thereafter. In 2004, the show's producers tried out yet another theme, which drew once again on the NBC chimes as its signature, but the Williams theme returned after only a few weeks. It is by far the most enduring theme in the program's history, having now been in use for over two decades.

The Scherzo for Today was iconically accompanied by Fred Facey announcing "From NBC News, this is Today..." until his death in April 2003. His announce could be heard until Katie Couric left on May 31, 2006, except for special editions requiring special introductions. Facey's work is now only heard on the weekend editions of NBC Nightly News with John Seigenthaler and on the MSNBC program Headliners and Legends. With the addition of Vieira, Les Marshak began announcing the introduction as of September 13, 2006 (Marshak had already been the announcer for Weekend Today) [6].

Currently, a lighter theme employing the NBC chimes is used to open the show's 7:30 through 9:30 half-hour segments, and also used as a closing theme.

[edit] Weekend Today

Anchors Lester Holt and Campbell Brown
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Anchors Lester Holt and Campbell Brown

The Sunday edition of NBC News' Today show premiered on September 20, 1987. Five years later, on August 1, 1992, the Saturday edition made its debut, expanding the broadcast schedule of the Today show franchise to seven days a week. The program is broadcast from Studio 1A in Rockefeller Plaza in New York, although Sunday Today originated from Washington for a few years.

The weekend broadcasts continue the Today tradition of covering breaking news, interviewing newsmakers, reporting on a variety of popular-culture and human-interest stories, covering health and finance issues and presenting the latest weather reports. The show airs from 7:00 AM EDT until 9:00 AM EDT, although many local stations choose to air locally-branded news programs at 8:00 AM EDT. Sunday Today airs at 8:00 AM EDT, lasting an hour. In addition, the show offers visitors to New York City a chance to observe firsthand the workings of a live television broadcast with its windowed studio on Rockefeller Plaza. Interaction with the crowd outside the studio is a major part of the program.

Weekend editions are tailored to the priorities and interests of weekend viewers—offering special series such as Saturday Today on the Plaza, featuring live performances by the biggest names in music and Broadway outside the studio throughout the summer.

Lyne Pitts is the executive producer of Weekend Today.

Weekend Today is currently co-anchored by Lester Holt and Campbell Brown with weather reports from Janice Huff on Saturdays and Chris Cimino on Sundays. MSNBC's Alison Stewart, Amy Robach, Norah O'Donnell, CNBC's Carl Quintanilla and NBC's Natalie Morales and Lisa Daniels report the daily news headlines from the newsdesk.

The program is watched by more viewers than ABC's Good Morning America Weekend Edition and CBS' Saturday Early Show/CBS News Sunday Morning.

[edit] Anchors

Sunday Today anchors included:

Weekend Today anchors include:

[edit] Special editions

The designation "special edition" often applies to instances wherein one or both hosts anchor the program from a location other than Studio 1-A, or in the event of significant news developments. The expansion of an episode is not at all unusual, usually for planned long-duration news events such as presidential inaugurations or elections. It could be argued that the first such expanded edition came on June 2, 1953, with the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Coverage that morning began at 5:30 a.m. EDT and wrapped at 9:00 a.m. EDT. Breaking news can also extend the show's hours: during the London bombings on July 7, 2005, Today remained on the air for six hours, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT.

On November 23, 1963, Today aired a special three-hour Saturday program recapping the assassination of President of the United States John F. Kennedy the previous day. Host Hugh Downs, Jack Lescoulie, and newsreader Frank Blair anchored the broadcast. In the opening minutes, Downs noted that the atmosphere that day "was very different" from what he had ever previously experienced. Lescoulie recalled how traffic in New York City after the assassination was at a standstill, and that telephone circuits were jammed. Downs added that as the hours passed, the country's grief would turn into a "more historic kind of grief."

On January 25, 1973, Today expanded to allow Frank McGee and Barbara Walters to anchor live coverage of the state funeral of former president Lyndon B. Johnson, as they broadcast from Washington. At 10:00 a.m., EST, they signed off to allow David Brinkley to continue the coverage, also from Washington. McGee said when signing off: "This concludes a special extended edition of The Today Show for final ceremonies for President Lyndon B. Johnson. NBC News will continue its coverage with commentary by David Brinkley after a quick pause for station identification."

On August 9, 1974, The Today Show was expanded to 5 hours and broadcast from Washington to cover the resignation of President Richard Nixon.

The show airing on March 31, 1981 was broadcast from Washington, as part of its coverage of the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan the day before.

The show airing on November 8, 2000, the morning after the contested presidential election in the United States, was the most-watched edition of the program in its history, with 12 million viewers, double the normal audience, tuning in.

When terrorists attacked the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11, 2001, Today was on the air. Matt Lauer announced that there was a breaking story in progress at 8:52 a.m. EDT, but threw to a commercial break when pictures were not available. Today returned indefinitely at 8:53 a.m. ET with Lauer, Couric, and Roker commenting on the events from the couch area of Studio 1A, initially as an accident. When United Airlines Flight 175 crashed at 9:02:58 a.m., it was seen live on the program. Katie Couric handled the initial reports of the attack on The Pentagon as Lauer joined Tom Brokaw at the anchor desk. The broadcast restarted at 10:30 a.m. EDT, moments after the collapse of One World Trade Center. Couric, Lauer and Brokaw anchored live coverage under the production of the Today team until 1 p.m. EDT when Brokaw anchored an NBC News Special Report from NBC News Headquarters in 30 Rockefeller Plaza. NBC News Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent Andrea Mitchell wrote in her memoir Talking Back that her husband, then Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, received his first briefing on the attacks when she summarized events for Brokaw on the air with her cell phone in her lap. Couric and Lauer anchored a special report from 5 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. so Brokaw could prepare for a special, expanded edition of NBC Nightly News, airing from the observation deck atop 30 Rockefeller Plaza, and continuing NBC News Live Coverage throughout the evening. In the days following the attacks, Today was expanded to 6 hours each day for the remainder of the week that followed the attacks. On September 11, 2006, the fifth anniversary of the attacks, MSNBC replayed Today from five years earlier as it covered the attacks.

The show airing on January 14, 2002 was a three-hour long celebration of the show's 50th anniversary. It was branded "A very special edition of 'Today.'" Anniversary shows often abandon typical format (outside of top-of-the-hour news updates) in favor of clips of old shows, interviews with previous hosts and other special segments tied to the occasion. For this show, the original opening music and intro to the show from 1952 was used, and several retrospectives were aired from former anchors, guests, producers, and handlers of J. Fred Muggs.

On September 11, 2002, the show was extended to six hours (broadcasting until 1 p.m. Eastern Time) for a special edition covering the anniversary of the terrorist attacks from one year earlier.

Following the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster on February 1, 2003, Weekend Today aired a special edition on Sunday, February 2, with the expanded introduction "Disaster: The Space Shuttle Columbia. From NBC News, this is a special edition of The Today Show with Soledad O'Brien at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida and David Bloom at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas." The next day was also a special edition with Matt Lauer at Studio 1A in New York and Katie Couric at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

On April 9, 2003 Today aired live until noon EST when U.S. Troops entered Baghdad. Lester Holt was sitting in next to Katie Couric for Matt Lauer. Today coverage was restarted as an NBC News Special Report at 9:12 a.m. EST and Tom Brokaw joined Couric in Studio 1A until taking over the coverage from NBC News Headquarters in 30 Rockefeller Plaza at noon.

When Pope John Paul II died on Saturday, April 2, 2005, Couric and Lauer anchored the weekend editions of the Today show. Lauer anchored from the Vatican with Campbell Brown offering reports by his side. On the day of the Pope's death, Couric anchored a special report on a Vatican statement updating the Pope's dire condition and Lauer reported for the special report anchored by Brian Williams when the Pope was officially dead. He returned to New York as Couric traveled to Vatican City to co-anchor coverage of the Pope's funeral with Williams.

The Today Show aired a live, six-hour special edition similar to that of 9/11 after the 7/7 transit bombings in London on July 7, 2005. The next day's show was labeled a special edition. Campbell Brown's large presence during that day's coverage, in addition to her presence on the show during the death of Pope John Paul II fueled speculation she would replace Couric in the near future.

Shows in the wake of Hurricane Katrina often carried the "special edition" branding, as Katie Couric, Campbell Brown, Lester Holt and others were stationed along the Gulf Coast instead of Studio 1-A.

The show airing on May 31, 2006 was a three-hour long celebration of Katie Couric's run on the show.

On July 12, 2006, Matt Lauer traveled to St. Petersburg (Leningrad), Russia, airing his interview with Russian President, Vladimir Putin.

On August 10, 2006, in response to the foiled terror plot in London, Today broadcast live in its timeslot for all timezones, and Matt Lauer anchored three NBC News Special Reports live in all time zones, at 6 a.m. EDT to report on the details of the story, at 8 a.m. EDT when U.S. counter-terrorism officials held a news conference at the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C., and at 11:45 a.m. when President George W. Bush made remarks upon landing in Wisconsin from just outside Air Force One.

On Tuesday, August 29, 2006, Today marked the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall. Matt and Ann anchored from 30 Rock in New York, while Brian Williams, Campbell Brown, Lester Holt and many other NBC News correspondents reported from the Gulf Coast. The show featured interviews with New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and former FEMA Director Michael Brown, and first lady Laura Bush.

Another long-format special edition was aired on Monday, September 11, 2006, to mark the fifth anniversary of the 2001 attacks. Matt Lauer anchored the coverage from Ground Zero and was joined by Tom Brokaw and Campbell Brown. Ann Curry was at the anchor desk in the temporary outdoor studio in Rockefeller Plaza. Lester Holt reported from the Pentagon and Natalie Morales was stationed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. For viewers in the New York Market, WNBC broke away from Today at 8:27 a.m. EDT to give detailed coverage of the observance at Ground Zero, anchored by Chuck Scarborough, as they have done every year.

During coverage of presidential inaugurations, or whenever major events happen in Washington during the mornings. the show broadcasts from the NBC studios in Washington.

Every Thanksgiving Day (since 2000), Today is truncated to two hours as the Today crew host the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The parade, produced by NBC's entertainment division and not NBC News, occupies what would normally be the show's third hour.

[edit] Ratings

[edit] Week Of Sept. 11, 2006

  • Today: 6,320,000 million viewers
  • Good Morning America (GMA): 4,730,000
  • The Early Show (TES): 2,800,000

[edit] Week Of Feb. 6, 2006

  • Today: 6,180,000 million viewers
  • GMA: 5,340,000
  • TES: 2,870,000

[edit] International broadcasts

NBC News programming is shown daily on the 24 hour news network Orbit News in Europe and the Middle East. This includes a live broadcast of The Today Show.

Nine Network in Australia has it's own version which airs from 4:00am to 6:00am. It does not air on their major regional affiliate, Prime Television, which airs religious programs and infomercials instead.

Today is also shown in the Philippines on ETC 2nd Avenue with the weekday editions airing 7:30am-10:00am local time and the weekend editions airing at 7:00am.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links


Anchors of The Today Show
Garroway • Chancellor • Downs • McGee • Walters • Hartz • Brokaw • Pauley • Gumbel • Norville • Garagiola • Couric • Lauer • Vieira
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