Why do you think Ann Curry was never promoted to co-anchor on the Today Show?

I thought she already had a new gig? According to my paper, “Curry isn’t going far. NBC has created a new job for her as Today show anchor-at-large and NBC national/international correspondent. Reports put her new salary between $10 mil and $20mil, a range she told USA Today is outrageously exaggerated. She did try hard to put two other rumors to rest.”

Philadelphia Inquirer, 6–29-12

@wundayatta I saw her kind of slam NBC on her last day on the Today Show. She implied they never gave her the chance to move up. I never would have guessed she is actually staying on their payroll as an anchor of sorts.

@JLeslie I have no idea. I just happened to see that in the paper today. Maybe they have it wrong.

Ann Curry was the co-anchor of the Today Show from June 2011 to June 2012. She took over when Meredith Vieira left Today. I saw the segment where Curry said she was stepping down as co-host. She was very upset. She is still working for NBC News and the Today Show, @JLeslie.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/4515786/ns/today/t/ann-curry/#.T-28I-24Ldk

@bkcunningham Oh, I didn’t realize she was cohost for a year. I haven’t watched the show in years. Was she actually promoted? Or, just filling in while they looked for someone else? From what she said it sounded like she had never been given the chance. She spoke as if she was a role model for Asian girls and that she was sorry she failed. Not exactly her words, but that was the feeling I got I thought she meant she never was able to be cohost, but I guess she meant she wasn’t successful in the position. Oh, very sad. Or, maybe I just completely misinterpreted what she said.

Thanks for all the info both of you.

She was promoted to co-anchor a year ago and was just removed last week because of falling ratings and lack of chemistry with Matt Lauer. The scuttlebutt is that Savannah Guthrie is getting the gig.

She didn’t sleep with the producer.

I think it was because she was never the cheerleader America’s sweetheart type, nor was she quite the “woman I want to wake up to” type. Previous long term Today show anchors exuded a wholesome sexiness that men liked and women wanted to identify with. Ann Curry always seemed a bit sexually reserved.

I know this sounds very sexist, but we’re talking about network television here.

You think someone else took over Curry’s role as Today Show co-host because of those reasons, @zenvelo? I never thought of it that way. I’ve always thought Curry’s hard news journalism skills were lacking. I think broadcast news has changed in recent years. One of the things you mention, that sex appeal, does seem to come before journalism skills these days. Really sad.

@JLeslie, as @bkcunningham and others have said, she was co-host for a year or so; a lot people did not like her in that role. She always felt kind of fluffy to me and I had a hard time taking her seriously when she covered hard news. Meredith, Katie, and even Jane seemed more versatile then Ann and they all seemed better suited for the tough stories. I watched Savannah Guthrie on Morning Joe and I think she might be a better fit.

@SuperMouse Funny, I stopped watching when Merideth took the job. I liked her fine on The View, but had a lot of trouble watching her on the Today Show. Plus, I moved to watching Morning Joe in the mornings when I bothered to watch morning television.

@bkcunningham Historically, Today show female hosts have been hard hitting journalists in a sexy velvet glove: Barbara Walters, Jane Pauley, Deborah Norville, Katie Couric, the no-nonsense girl you want to take home to both mom and dad. (Novrville was weak on journalism but she was awfully attractive to mainstream America.) Meredith Vieira was not far from that mold. i think Ann Curry was weaker on both counts.

Sex has sold on network TV for over fifty years.

Ratings <——It’s really that simple in TV land.

I think she is an amazing newswoman.
It seems like they have long haired women with more “friendly flirty” rather than the compassionate smart chick.

Late to this party but I am weighing in because I have been a Today Show watcher since probably mid-1980’s. I always liked Ann Curry. She seemed like a team player, climbing mountains and growing her hair long to donate it for Locks of Love. I think she’s attractive (although I’m no judge of what men find attractive since I’m not a man) and I think she did a good job with the hard interviews and yet she has the ability to show warmth and empathy when interviewing people who have experienced tragedy. I find it hard to believe that she slammed NBC on her last day, as @JLeslie suggests. People at her level are usually more diplomatic with their words, especially since she’s planning to continue with the company. I would prefer to see a transcript of what she actually said before making a judgement about that supposed statement.

@jca She did it with grace, kind of leaving viewers to read between the lines. I’ll search for a clip.

Edit: I found this. It is much longer than I had seen previously. Slam is definitely too harsh a description. What do you think about her goodbye?

To me, she’s saying she didn’t want to go, but she’s being a good sport. She is toeing the company line. Trying not to burn bridges, and yet she doesn’t understand it and is secretly bitter about it.

I would not be surprised if she jumps ship sometime in the next few years.

Believe it or not, that is the first time I ever watched any of them. I’m not much of a TV person. I’m less of a TV news person. And even less of a morning TV news person. I don’t like putting up with advertisements. At least at NPR, they keep the advertisements to about ten seconds each and maybe thirty seconds at a time.

@wundayatta Good description. I agree. I think she will leave before that if her contract allows it.