Matt Lauer Confirms The Rumors. Goodbye Forever

Matt Lauer used to be America’s favorite TV host,  bagging a record $20 million deal in 2016. Until   he fell from grace after several sexual assault  allegations, lost his wife through a divorce,   and got fired. The revelations not only cost  him his high-profile job but have seemingly   made Lauer completely unhireable, casting an  ominous dark shadow over his now tarnished   legacy. The fall from grace has been steep for the  disgraced former anchor, who has since become a   pariah in the media world. Will he ever recover  from this? Or will he sink lower into oblivion?   Join us as we delve into Matt Lauer Will Never  Work Again, See His Life Today After Scandal. The Fall of a TV Icon Matthew Todd Lauer used to be a very famous  American television news personality. He became   best known for his work with NBC News. After  working as a local news person in New York City on   WNBC, his first big national job was as the news  anchor for “The Today Show” from 1994 to 1997. Lauer got his college degree from Ohio University  at age 39 in 1997. He had studied at the school's   Scripps College of Communication, School of  Media Arts and Studies. Lauer had previously   dropped out of the same university in the spring  of 1979 to start his television career. He was   hired as a producer for the noon newscast at  WOWK-TV in Huntington, West Virginia. By 1980,   Lauer had become an on-air reporter for that  station's 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. news shows. Lauer joined NBC in 1992, becoming  co-anchor of the morning news show   Today in New York on NBC's New  York station WNBC. The next year,   he took on co-anchoring the evening Live at Five  newscasts with Sue Simmons. He eventually became   the permanent co-anchor and gave up anchoring  mornings by 1994. Maurice DuBois replaced   Lauer on Today in New York. Lauer stayed  as co-anchor on Live at Five until 1996. Lauer's talent on camera soon  led to many opportunities with   NBC News. He filled in reading the news  on “The Today Show” for Margaret Larson   when needed from 1992 to 1993. This "audition"  period allowed him to join “The Today Show”   full-time in January 1994 as the news anchor,  while still co-anchoring the other New York shows. Lauer also stepped in for other NBC  hosts and anchors. He filled in as   co-host of “Weekend Today” for Scott  Simon, Mike Schneider and Jack Ford.   He was anchor for the former NBC News program  “NBC News at Sunrise” when Ann Curry was away,   from 1992 to 1997. Lauer had also substituted  for Tom Brokaw on “NBC Nightly News”. As the   “Today Show” news anchor, Lauer  substituted for Bryant Gumbel as   co-host before officially becoming co-anchor  on January 6, 1997, after Gumbel stepped down. In addition to his duties on  “The Today Show,” Lauer also   hosted programs on Discovery Channel and MSNBC. Lauer remained the co-host of NBC's Today show,  where he stayed until 2017. He also frequently   appeared on the evening news show Dateline  NBC. With NBC, Lauer hosted the yearly Macy's   Thanksgiving Day Parade and co-hosted the  opening ceremonies of several Olympic Games. From 1998 until 2011, Lauer went on a yearly  five-day, around-the-world adventure segment   called "Where in the World is Matt Lauer?" on the  “Today Show” during important TV viewing periods.   The segment was named after the PBS game show  “Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?” and used   its theme song. This sent Lauer to report from  various locations worldwide on their importance,   like Bhutan, Easter Island, the Panama Canal,  Iran, Hong Kong, Croatia, and the Great Wall   of China. In 2011, NBC News postponed the  segment due to the struggling U.S. economy. Sometimes, Lauer's interviews became tense.  During a June 2005 talk with Tom Cruise,   Lauer argued with Cruise about  psychiatry and postpartum depression,   and Cruise called Lauer "glib." In December  2008, Cruise said he regretted their exchange. On June 19, 2007, Lauer interviewed  Prince William and Prince Harry on the   10th anniversary of their mother  Diana, Princess of Wales' death. Between 1998 and 2017, Lauer  co-hosted NBC's live coverage   of the “Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade” annually. Lauer also co-hosted the opening ceremonies of  several Olympic Games, continuing what his former   co-host Katie Couric had done since the 2000  Summer Olympics. He co-hosted the openings of the   2008 Summer Olympics, 2010 Winter Olympics, 2012  Summer Olympics, 2014 Winter Olympics, and 2016   Summer Olympics. His commentary during the 2012  opening ceremonies, along with co-hosts Meredith   Vieira and Bob Costas, received intense criticism  for being described as "ignorant" and "banal." On April 5, 2012, Lauer announced he  had signed a new contract with NBC   News through 2017. Forbes estimated this  contract paid Lauer $25 million per year. It was widely reported that Lauer influenced the  departure of his co-anchor Ann Curry from “The   Today Show,” carried out by executive producer  Jim Bell under the codename "Operation Bambi." During the 2014 Winter Olympics, Lauer replaced  prime-time host Bob Costas from February 11-14,   after Costas suffered a major eye infection. In November 2015, Lauer hosted an interview  where Charlie Sheen revealed he was HIV-positive. On September 8, 2016, he also conducted separate  30-minute interviews with presidential candidates   Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, both  receiving much criticism. He devoted much   of Clinton's interview to her email server,  rushing through audience topics like domestic   terror and veterans' affairs. Many felt Lauer  failed to challenge Trump's inaccuracies,   like claiming he opposed the Iraq  War which sources called "lies." On November 30, 2016, it was revealed  Lauer signed a new contract through   2018. Variety reported his salary was  $20 million per year. On January 6,   2017, Lauer celebrated his 20th anniversary  on The Today Show looking back at memorable   moments. Despite his renowned broadcasting  career, Matt Lauer's legacy took an explosive   turn. How could someone so prominent fall  from grace so dramatically? Let’s find out. Disturbing Allegations Emerge On November 29, 2017, NBC News announced they  had fired Lauer after an unidentified female NBC   employee reported that Lauer had sexually harassed  her during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi,   Russia, and the harassment continued after  they returned to New York. Andrew Lack,   the NBC News chairman, sent a memo to  staff saying they received a detailed   complaint about Lauer's inappropriate  sexual behavior at work. Lack said   while it was the first complaint in  Lauer's over 20 years at NBC News,   they had reason to believe it was not an  isolated incident. A network executive   said Lauer would not get any monetary settlement  because he was fired "for cause." Lauer's last   day on air was November 28, 2017. His contract  was supposed to run through the end of 2018. NBC News management said they were unaware  of previous allegations against Lauer,   but knew The New York Times and Variety were  independently investigating his behavior. Later   reporting disputed this, with a former NBC News  correspondent Linda Vester saying management   must have known and "everybody knew" Lauer was  dangerous. In the 2019 book “Catch and Kill”,   Ronan Farrow cited sources stating NBC News  was aware of Lauer's misconduct beforehand,   and Harvey Weinstein used this to pressure NBC  into killing a story exposing Weinstein's own   sexual assaults. Variety reported allegations  from at least ten of Lauer's current and former   colleagues. NBC acknowledged three additional  cases against Lauer from 2000 to 2007. In the book “Catch and Kill”, Farrow reveals  one of Lauer's alleged victims as Brooke Nevils,   who says Lauer anally raped her in his hotel  room while they were in Sochi covering the   2014 Winter Olympics for NBC. Farrow also  writes in his book that Nevils had additional   sexual encounters with Lauer after the initial  incident, but she characterized those later   encounters as "transactional", only consenting  out of fear that Lauer controlled her career. In a statement after being fired, Lauer apologized  for his actions, saying some of what was being   said about him was untrue or mischaracterized, but  there was enough truth in the stories to make him   feel embarrassed and ashamed. Following Nevils'  allegation of sexual assault published in Farrow's   book, Lauer issued an open letter confirming he  had a consensual sexual relationship with Nevils   that started in 2014 in Sochi, but denying  the initial encounter was non-consensual. Two weeks after Lauer's firing, Addie  Zinone, a former Today production assistant,   made an additional accusation, saying she  had a consensual sexual relationship with   Lauer in June 2000. Zinone claimed  it was an "abuse of power" by Lauer   because she felt turning down his  advances would have hurt her career. According to Farrow, Today show booker  Melissa Lonner claims Lauer exposed   himself to her in 2010 at an NBC party.  Lauer denies this claim and through his   lawyer said he will not take part in "the  marketing circus' ' of Farrow's book. In 2008, he was roasted by the New York  Friars Club where colleagues made jokes   about his reputation for having  relationships with staff members. Lauer's Personal Life Crumbles In July 2019, Matt Lauer's wife Annette Roque   filed for divorce almost two  years after they separated. Roque, 57, submitted the paperwork in  Suffolk County, New York. Lucian Chalfen,   the public information director for New  York's court system, confirmed this to PEOPLE. Chalfen said, "The case, which  is an uncontested divorce,   was filed on July 9th in the State  Supreme Court in Suffolk County,   New York and is awaiting a judge's review of the  agreement. After a judge signs it, it will be sent   to the court clerk's office to be entered.  This process could take up to a few months." Roque's attorney John Teitler told  PEOPLE, "The matter has been settled." Lauer and Roque share three children: son  Jack, 18, daughter Romy, 15, and son Thijs, 12. PEOPLE Magazine confirmed in December 2017  that Lauer and his wife had removed their   wedding rings, though a source said  at the time Lauer was "fighting to   save the marriage" because "their  first thought is their children." After his firing, insiders told PEOPLE  that the veteran host was allegedly   often unfaithful to Roque, a former  Dutch model he married in 1998 after   a blind date. Lauer was previously married to  TV producer Nancy Alspaugh from 1981 to 1988. Roque briefly filed for divorce from Lauer in  2006. In court documents obtained by the National   Enquirer, Roque claimed Lauer had committed  "cruel and inhumane" acts against her,   demonstrating "extreme anger and hostility" that  endangered her mental and physical wellbeing.   She also claimed he had repeatedly  criticized her parenting skills. Despite these allegations, Roque withdrew the  court papers three weeks after filing them. In 2010, the couple slammed  a report claiming they had   split and Lauer had moved out of their  home, calling it "a work of fiction." Lauer told PEOPLE Magazine at the time that he  was living in his apartment with Annette and their   children as a family and couple. He said he had  never moved out and there was no truth to that. Lauer acknowledged past  difficulties in the marriage,   but labeled reports that he cheated on  her as "ridiculous" and "offensive." He said they had not had a  completely perfect, easy marriage,   but the stories read over the years were not  true. He said the accusations of infidelity   were ridiculous and he was not going to dignify  them with an answer because it was not true. In a separate interview with PEOPLE Magazine,   Roque stated she wanted to stand up for their  family and protect them out of self-respect. She acknowledged past marital difficulties  but said they had worked through it. A Life in Exile Lauer was the very popular TV host of  NBC's “Today show,” making audiences   like him with his trustworthy way  of being. But he lost his good name   after getting fired from the show in 2017  after allegations of bad sexual behavior. Viewers believe this situation partly  inspired the TV drama series “The   Morning Show,” which has Steve Carell playing a  beloved news person who suddenly loses his job. In November 2023, a source told  People magazine that Lauer had   "greatly changed his friend circle" and is  currently living "a very quiet life". He   also went to an NBC producer's wedding  in December 2023, where he saw former   co-workers like Hoda Kotb and Al Roker  for the first time since getting fired. So, what happened to Lauer after the revelations? After the revelations, some of Lauer’s friends  who had been close to him for years decided   to drop him en masse. His former colleague  Katie Couric said she cut all ties with him,   per The Independent: “I think what I  realized is that there was a side of   Matt I never really knew.” Back in 2019, fellow TV  personality Al Roker told Entertainment Tonight,   “I don’t really talk about him that much, but we  wish him well.” But Lauer reportedly “iced out”   many of his old friends too, sources told People  in November 2023. The publication reported that   his friendship circle has majorly changed  compared to when he was in the public eye. However, Bryant Gumbel, former co-host of Today,  has kept his friendship with Lauer, reportedly   saying at an event last year in New York City  that Lauer is a "good man" who is "doing fine". When the 66-year-old attended an  NBC producer's wedding in New York   City with his partner Shamin  Abas in December last year,   he unexpectedly reunited with a familiar  face: his former co-host, Savannah Guthrie. Lauer and Guthrie had a cordial professional  relationship throughout their five years as   co-hosts, but that all changed after Lauer  was fired. While she initially told People   magazine that she tried to "keep in touch" with  him, she quickly publicly condemned his alleged   behavior. Sources even reportedly claimed that  she refused to be in the same room with him. In the six years since he was fired, Lauer has  notoriously withdrawn from the public eye. The   former TV host is rarely seen out in public  – so when he is, the pictures make headlines. In December 2023, he was spotted in  The Hamptons doing some shopping while   wearing black jeans and an orange puffer jacket. After Lauer admitted to having  affairs outside his marriage,   his marriage to Annette Roque ended. Roque left  the US for a while at the time of the allegations,   per Hello, eventually returning to their  family home in the Hamptons. However,   they are said to be focusing on raising their  children together, Thijs, Romy, and Jack. Their divorce was finalized in 2019, and  Lauer began dating his current girlfriend   Abas the same year. Abas is a publicist who  works in marketing and events in New York. Plotting a Comeback? A source told US Weekly exclusively that  Matt Lauer "is planning a comeback" years   after he was fired from NBC amid  allegations of sexual misconduct. The source said he has started to talk  to people. He is planning his next move,   still very upset with how he was portrayed,  and still feels like he was the victim. The insider told US Weekly that Lauer,  66, wants to get back into the media,   but is spending most of his time on  Long Island. The source added that   he wants to be relevant again, but what  that is exactly is yet to be decided. Lauer feels that enough time has gone by and he  should be allowed to return to the media space. Amid other high-profile men implicated  in the #MeToo movement, the former Today   host made headlines in November 2017 after a  female colleague accused him of inappropriate   behavior. In 2019, journalist Ronan Farrow  published details about the alleged assault   in his book Catch and Kill. Lauer has  denied all the accusations against him. The source told Us he went from being the biggest  guy out there, and now every headline attached to   him is 'disgraced'; it's very painful for him to  go out there with his girlfriend. The source said   he is very thin-skinned — don't expect an apology,  he's the one who feels is owed an apology. Lauer continues to make headlines years after  news of his scandal first broke. Most recently,   he and girlfriend Shamin Abas attended Don  Lemon's New York City wedding on Saturday,   April 6. The insider explained that  this is part of Lauer's campaign to   "test the waters" with various public appearances. While Lauer and Abas have been on and off  since 2019, the same source revealed to   US Weekly that now they're very much  on. The source said he wants to show   that he's in a stable relationship,  not a playboy, and has a stable life. The Uphill Battle for Redemption After the shocking accusations  of awful misbehavior, Matt Lauer   is considering trying to restart  his career in the media world. But   he would have a very difficult uphill  battle to make a meaningful comeback. The details of the disturbing allegations  against the former Today Show host paint   a dark picture of Lauer as an abuser who  mistreated and took advantage of female   colleagues. He is not just portrayed as someone  who had an inappropriate consensual relationship. These sorts of allegations create an image of  Lauer as a powerful man who abused his position   and authority at NBC to prey on subordinates.  If true, his behavior goes far beyond simply   having an affair. It suggests a pattern of sexual  harassment, abuse, and misconduct over many years. Given the severity of what Lauer is accused  of, making any kind of career revival would be   extremely challenging. Some celebrity figures are  able to gain public forgiveness after scandals,   but accusations of sexual assault  make redemption much harder. For someone like Lauer who was  adored by TV viewers for decades,   the disturbing allegations shattered his  image and reputation. It will be extremely   difficult for audiences to separate  the beloved morning show host they   welcomed into their homes from the alleged  predatory abuser described in the accounts. According to reports, Lauer feels  wronged by how he was portrayed   and wants the public to see him as  the victim, not an apologizer. But   dismissing the allegations or playing the  victim role would likely go over poorly. It   could be seen as Lauer failing to take full  accountability or downplaying culpability. Most crisis public relations experts would  likely advise Lauer to take full responsibility,   show true contrition and remorse, and not  lash out in self-defense if he hopes to   rehabilitate his image. However, reports suggest  he does not plan to issue an outright apology. If Lauer does somehow get  another professional opportunity,   the reaction from the public and media  industry could be harsh. Many may see   giving him a new platform as condoning  or forgiving alleged abusive behavior. Employers or producers may face intense  backlash from some viewers, advocacy groups,   and sponsors for enabling Lauer. They  could be accused of not believing women,   caring more about ratings than ethics,  and creating an unsafe workplace culture. For these reasons, it seems Lauer would  have an extraordinarily difficult road   to regaining respect and relevance in  the media. The damage to his name may   be too great to overcome, especially if  he fails to take full accountability. Of course, only time will tell if he  makes a serious attempt at a comeback   and has any success. But the path for  Lauer appears to be an incredibly steep,   uphill climb to redeem and rehabilitate  his once-esteemed reputation and brand. Thanks for watching. Check out another  interesting video by clicking on the   link appearing on your screen right now.