“Today” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie abruptly exited the morning program mid-broadcast on Tuesday and tested positive for COVID-19.
Sheinelle Jones, who typically co-hosts the third hour of NBC’s “Today” show, informed viewers Tuesday that Guthrie “left early” because she “wasn’t feeling great” before receiving her COVID-19 test results. This marks Guthrie’s third case of the respiratory illness.
“It has been an interesting morning for us,” Jones said around 9 a.m. Eastern time, adding that Guthrie “rushed home to rest up” as soon as her COVID test came back.
“Today” co-anchor Hoda Kotb has been absent from the morning show for more than a week, sparking a wave of confusion and concern among viewers.
The veteran broadcast journalist most recently appeared live on the NBC news program on Feb. 17, according to Newsweek. She also participated in the Feb. 20 President’s Day episode of “Today,” which was pretaped on Feb. 17.
So far, Kotb’s prolonged absence has gone unexplained as some of her NBC News colleagues — including Craig Melvin, Tom Llamas, Willie Geist and Sheinelle Jones — continue to fill in for her alongside “Today” co-anchor Guthrie and “Today With Hoda & Jenna” co-host Jenna Bush Hager.
Additionally, no new episodes of Kotb’s “Today” podcast “Making Space” — which typically come out on Mondays — have been released this week. The latest installment of “Making Space,” featuring actor Rosie Perez, debuted on Feb. 20.
Meantime, Guthrie, who has received a COVID-19 vaccine and booster shot, previously tested positive for the virus in January 2022, and again in May 2022. The veteran newscaster did not return to the show Tuesday after 7:30 a.m. Eastern.
Representatives for “Today” did not immediately respond Tuesday to the L.A. Times’ request for comment.
Amid her mysterious “Today” hiatus, Kotb has continued to post motivational quotes that fans have been striving to decipher on Instagram. Since Wednesday, the beloved newscaster has been sharing daily proverbs, such as, “One day you will see how brave you have been,” “Sometimes miracles are just good people with kind hearts,” and, “Choose hope.”
Underneath Kotb’s recent Instagram posts, hundreds of loyal fans have expressed concern and support for the longtime NBC News correspondent, mother and vocal breast cancer survivor.
“Find it difficult to watch with you not being there,” one person wrote.
“Seriously…what is going on with you?” another commented. “I know you have a right to privacy, but your truest fans have noticed your absence and these posts…worried about you.”
“Today show just isn’t the same without you!” remarked another. “I hope you’re ok, but boy if they are letting you go.. people are going to drop like flys watching Today. We Love Hoda!”
About a year ago, Kotb disappeared briefly from “Today” after testing positive for COVID-19. She promptly updated her social media followers on her condition at the time via Twitter.
“Thx for well wishes!” Kotb tweeted from isolation. “Feeling good.. cant wait to see you all when I am in the clear! Xo.”
