Al Roker is honoring Hoda Kotb after she announced her departure from the Today show.
“It’s taken a little time to process, but I feel nothing but happiness for my dear friend, @hodakotb,” Roker, 70, wrote via Instagram on Sunday, September 29. “She has taught me that it’s not about you but the other person. I have known her forever and it has always been about the other person.”
He continued, “From my family, to her mom, sibs, and daughters, to our @todayshow family, Hoda has been about her circle. And that’s why she has the courage to do this. I love you. And, you ain’t going that far, Sis!”
Alongside the sweet message, Roker shared several photos with Kotb, 60, over the years. In one snap, Kotb and Roker beamed while standing beside her two kids: daughters Haley, 7, and Hope, 4.
Kotb shocked fans when she tearfully revealed her departure from the morning show. “I realized that it was time for me to turn the page at 60, and to try something new. This is the right time for me to move on,” she explained on Thursday, September 26, noting that her daughters were the motivation for her decision to part ways.
Hours after her announcement, an NBC insider exclusively told Us Weekly that some were not shocked by her exit. “It’s such a hard job on your life,” the source said. “I think the average person understands that morning TV is not glamorous.”
Days later, a Puck report suggested Kotb’s decision to leave may have been due to financial factors. The outlet reported that a source with direct knowledge of her salary said Kotb was making over $20 million in her position, but NBC proposed a pay cut. However, a source close to Kotb told Us that “salary played no role in Hoda’s decision.”
Kotb had been with NBC for over three decades, joining Today in 2007. She became an anchor on the morning show in 2018 alongside Savannah Guthrie, who remains in the role.
Since the news broke, several of Kotb’s fellow Today show hosts have praised her. “I’m not surprised that Hoda’s living her life and doing what she wants to do,” Dylan Dreyer exclusively told Us Weekly, calling Kotb’s exit not “bad news at all.”
Dreyer noted that the Today show hosts are “sad,” but added that she’ll still remain a part of Kotb’s life. “I mean, I love working with her, but Hoda and I are also neighbors so I’m still going to see Hoda all the time,” Dreyer said.
