Megyn Kelly will not travel with the rest of NBC’s top team to report from the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea
Megyn Kelly will not travel with the rest of NBC’s top team to report from the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
Kelly will continue to host the 9.00 am Eastern hour of the TODAY Show from New York City’s Rockefeller Center throughout the Games, Fox News confirmed Monday.
‘This is incredibly embarrassing for Megyn,’ an NBC News insider told Fox.
‘Anybody who’s anybody at NBC goes to the Olympics.’
NBC invests heavily in bringing Olympic Games coverage to the US, spending $1 billion for the broadcast rights.
Kelly now receives the largest salary of all of the news personalities at the network, taking home $23 million annually.
‘It is odd that NBC News would leave its highest-paid host at home,’ The Hill media columnist Joe Concha told Fox News.
Pictured: (left to right) Natalie Morales, Savannah Guthrie, Matt Lauer, Al Roker and Maddie Bowman broadcast from the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia
The former Fox News anchor has just come off the highest ratings her show, Megyn Kelly TODAY, has seen since premiering on BC on September 25; Kelly is seen here in a still shot from her show on December 7
Kelly is also a household name, and it’s equally unusual for the network to leave its most recognizable stars at home.
‘Traditionally, NBC brings its highest-profile people [to the Olympics], particularly on their morning shows,’ Sports Illustrated media guru Richard Deitsch told Fox.
In years past, its heavy hitters have made the trip to wherever the Games have gone.
Most recently Matt Lauer, Natalie Morales, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker, and Hoda Kotb have shared the athletes’ stories from Sochi in Russia in 2014 and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in August 2016.
Kotb has since replaced Lauer on TODAY after he was disgraced by allegations of sexual misconduct.
Lauer was formerly NBC’s highest paid anchor, leaving behind an annual salary estimated to be $25 million by Forbes, after hosting for the network since 1997.
Actor Zac Efron (left) smiles for the camera with NBC’s Hoda Kotb (center) and former NBC host Matt Lauer (right), from the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Kotb replaced Lauer on TODAY after he was disgraced by allegations of sexual misconduct
Kelly is seen here on set of Megyn Kelly TODAY on December 12
It’s not clear whether Kelly chose to sit out the Olympics in South Korea, or the network made the decision for her to stay home.
The former Fox News anchor has just come off the highest ratings her show, Megyn Kelly TODAY, has seen since premiering on BC on September 25.
Even though the hour is gaining momentum, some say not broadcasting from the Olympics is a missed opportunity, according to Fox.
‘Megyn’s ratings are improving a bit as the show has focused on the sexual harassment issue, but she could still use the kind of exposure and interviews you only get when physically at the Olympics,’ Concha said.
This decision to keep her grounded comes after the star received backlash over comments she made that were perceived to condone fat-shaming, and she had to publicly address the issue on her show.
Kathie Lee Gifford and Jenna Bush Hager will keep Kelly in company in New York during the 2018 Winter Games, TV Newser reported.
Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, Al Roker, Natalie Morales, Willie Geist, Craig Melvin, Lester Holt and Dylan Dreyer are all headed to PyeongChang.
The 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea will run from February 9 to February 25.
Kathie Lee Gifford and Jenna Bush Hager will keep Kelly in company in New York during the 2018 Winter Game; Kelly is seen here on set for Megyn Kelly TODAY on November 29