>> HOW DO WE DO IT DAY AFTER DAY?
DAY? >> HELLO, EVERYBODY.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
ITS WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29th. ITS A VERY, VERY SAD DAY HERE
AT NBC.
AT NBC.
>> ITS A VERY DIFFICULT,
DIFFICULT DAY.
IM SURE BY NOW YOU GUYS ALL
KNOW WE FOUND OUT EARLY THIS
MORNING, PREDAWN, A PHONE CALL
ABOUT OUR COLLEAGUE MATT SFLAUR AND OUR FRIEND.AGUE MATT SFLAUR
AND OUR FRIEND.
>> AND OUR DEAR DEAR FRIEND.
THE NEWS WAS BROKE THIS MORNING
AND THIS IS HOW IT WAS
DELIVERED.
TAKE A LOOK.
>> THIS IS A SAD MORNING HERE AT
"TODAY" AND AT NBC NEWS. JUST MOMENTS AGO, NBC NEWS
CHAIRMAN EENDS LACK SENT THE
FOLLOWING NOTE TO OUR
ORGANIZATION.
ORGANIZATION.
DEAR COLLEAGUES ON MONDAY NIGHT WE RECEIVED A DETAILED COMPLAINT
FROM A COLLEAGUE ABOUT
INAPPROPRIATE SEXUAL BEHAVIOR IN
THE WORKPLACE BY MATT LAUER. IT REPRESENTED, AFTER SERIOUS
REVIEW, A CLEAR VIOLATION OF OUR
COMPANYS STANDARDS. AS A RESULT WE HAVE DECIDED TO
TERMINATE HIS EMPLOYMENT.
WHILE IT IS THE FIRST COMPLAINT
ABOUT HIS BEHAVIOR IN THE OVER
20 YEARS HE HAS BEEN AT NBC
NEWS, WE WERE ALSO PRESENTED
WITH REASON TO BELIEVE THIS MAY
NOT HAVE BEEN AN ISOLATED
INCIDENT.
INCIDENT.
OUR HIGHEST PRIORITY IS TO
CREATE A WORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT
WHERE EVERYONE FEELS SAFE AND
PROTECTED AND TO ENSURE THAT ANY
ACTIONS THAT RUN COUNTER TO OUR
CORE VALUES ARE MET WITH
CONSEQUENCES TO MATTER WHO THE
OFFENDER.
WE ARE DEEPLY SADSENNED BY THIS
TURN OF EVENTS BUT WE WILL FACE
IT TOGETHER AS A NEWS
ORGANIZATION AND DO IT INNOCENCE
AS TRANSPARENT A MANNER AS WE CAN."ANSPARENT A MANNER AS WE
CAN."
THAT IS THE STATEMENT FROM OUR CHILDREN ANDY LACK.NT FROM OUR
CHILDREN ANDY LACK. AND WE JUST LEARN THIS HAD
MOMENTS AGO JUST THIS MORNING.
AS IM SURE YOU CAN IMAGINE, WE
ARE DEVASTATED AND WE ARE STILL
PROCESSING ALL OF THIS, AND I
WILL TELL YOU RIGHT NOW, WE DO
NOT KNOW MORE THAN WHAT I JUST
SHARED WITH YOU, BUT WE WILL BE
COVERING THE STORY AS REPORTERS
AS JOURNALISTS.
AS JOURNALISTS. IM SURE WE WILL BE LEARNING
MORE DETAILS IN THE HOURS AND
DAYS TO COME AND WE PROMISE WE
WILL SHARE THAT WITH YOU.
AND HODA, I MEAN, YOU KNOW FOR
THE MOMENT ALL WE CAN SAY IS
THAT WE ARE HEART BROKEN.
IM HEART BROKEN FOR HAT, HE IS
MY DEAR DEAR FRIEND AND MY
PARTNER AND BELOVED BY MANY,
MANY PEOPLE HERE AND IM HEART
BROKEN FOR THE BRAVE COLLEAGUE
WHO CAME FORWARD TO TELL HER
STORY AND ANY OTHER WOMEN WHO
HAVE THEIR OWN STORIES TO TELL.
>> UH-HUH.
>> UH-HUH. >> AND WE ARE GRAPPLING WITH A
DIM LEL MA SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE
FACED THESE PAST FEW WEEKS, HOW
DO YOU RECONCILE YOUR LOVE FOR
SOMEONE WITH THE REVELATION THAT
THEY HAVE BEHAVED BADLY, AND I
DONT KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT.
BUT I DO KNOW THAT THIS MUCH
RECKONING THAT SO MANY
ORGANIZATIONS HAVE BEEN GOING
THROUGH IS IMPORTANT.
ITS LONG OVERDUE AND IT MUST
RESULT IN WORKPLACES WHERE ALL
WOMEN, ALL PEOPLE FEEL SAFE AND
RESPECTED.
RESPECTED.
AS PAINFUL AS IT IS THIS MOMENT IN OUR CULTURE, AND THIS CHANGE
HAD TO HAPPEN.
>> YEAH, IT DID. THIS IS A VERY TOUGH MORNING FOR
BOTH OF US.
IVE KNOWN MATT FOR 15 YEARS,
AND IVE LOVED HIM AS A FRIEND
AND COLLEAGUE AND AGAIN JUST
LIKE YOU WERE SAYING ITS HARD
TO RECONCILE WHAT WE ARE HEARING
WITH THE MAN WHO WE KNOW WHO
WALKS IN THIS BUILDING EVERY
SINGLE DAY.
SINGLE DAY. WE WERE BOTH WOKEN UP WITH THE
NEW KIND OF PREDAWN AND WERE
TRYING TO PROCESS IT AND TRYING
TO MAKE SENSE OF IT AND IT WILL
TAKE OM TIME FOR THAT.
>> I THINK THE PROCESSING IS
GOING TO TAKE A LOT OF TIME, AND
AGAIN, ITS AN THAT FEELING THAT
WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THAT I
THINK EVERYONE AT HOME MAYBE HAS
FELT SOMETHING THIS WAY.
YOUVE LOVED SOMEONE SO MUCH AND
YOU HEAR SOMETHING AND YOU GO
WHAT, HOW DOES THAT MAKE SENSE?
I THINK YOU GRAPPLE WITH THAT IN
YOUR HEAD AND TRY TO MAKE SENSE
OUT OF IT.
IT DOES TAKE TIME.
YOU CANT FIGURE IT OUT
OVERNIGHT.
OVERNIGHT.
>> I DONT KNOW.
IM GRAPPLING WITH SHOULD I EVEN
SHARE SOMETHING, BUT I GUESS I REALLY SHOULD.G, BUT I GUESS I
REALLY SHOULD.
THE FEELING WHEN YOUVE BEEN --
AND I DONT FEEL THAT MATT HAS BETRAYED US IN ANY WAY AT ALL
BUT WHEN I FOUND OUT THAT MY
HUSBAND HAD BETRAYED ME, YOU
QUESTION YOUR OWN JUDGMENT.
YOU QUESTION, YOU SAY WAS
EVERYTHING A LIE?
WAS EVERYTHING A LIE.
I THINK WE HAVE TO FIGHT AGAINST
THAT.
THAT.
VERY MUCH FIGHT AGAINST THAT. THAT THE MAN WE KNOW AND ADORED
WAS THE MAN WE LOVED AND ADORED
AND CONTINUED TO.
I TEXTED HIM THIS MORNING AND
SAID I ADORE YOU, AND NO PERSON
IS PERFECT IN THIS WORLD.
NOBODY IS.
NOBODY IS.
WEVE ALL SINNED AND FALLEN
SHORT OF THE GLORY OF GOD IS WHAT SCRIPTURE SAYS.F GOD IS
WHAT SCRIPTURE SAYS. AND WHAT WE NEED NOW IS
FORGIVENESS AND WE 23450ED MERCY
FOR ONE ANOTHER AND DONT NEED
TAUNTS AND UGLINESS.
I SEND OUT MY LOVE RIGHT NOW TO
THE PERSON WHO OF IT IS WHO CAME
FORWARD.
FORWARD.
MAY GOD HEAL THAT PERSON.
I SEND IT TO MATT AND HIS
CHILDREN AND HIS WIFE. MAY GOD BLESS FAMILY AND HEAL.
THE ONLY THING IM SURE OF IS
ONLY GOD CAN HEAL IT AND JUST --
THERES NO BAD TIME TO REACH OUT
FOR HIS HELP.
NO BAD TIME.
>> YOU ARE RIGHT.
ITS GUIDED YOU THROUGHOUT YOUR
LIFE.
LIFE.
>> THROUGH EVERYTHING. AND SOMEBODY -- THIS IS A GOOD
WAY TO THINK OF IT, TOO.
THERE WAS A MAN, A WONDERFUL,
WONDERFUL MAN WHO WAS AN ADVISER
TO ME AND FRANK THROUGH OUR
LIFETIME.
LIFETIME.
AND I HAD MY EYES JUST ON ME FOR A LONG TIME AND I WAS UPSET ANDR
A LONG TIME AND I WAS UPSET AND HURT WHICH YOU WOULD NORMALLY BE
LIKE IM SURE MATTS FAMILY IS.
AND HE SAID KATHY, IF YOU CANT
FORGIVE YOUR HUSBAND, THIS IS
IMPORTANT, YOU GUYS, FORGIVE
YOUR CHILDRENS FATHER.
SAME PERSON.
SAME PERSON. >> UH-HUH.
>> UH-HUH. >> SAME PERSON BUT THATS THE
ONE YOU LOVE.
THATS THE ONE YOU BELIEVE IN.
THATS THE ONE -- WE ARE ALL SO
BROKEN.
BROKEN.
WERE BROKEN AND WE NEED
SOMEBODY TO PUT US BACK TOGETHER.TO PUT US BACK
TOGETHER.
AND ITS POSSIBLE. >> IT IS POSSIBLE.
>> IT IS SO POSSIBLE.
IM LIVING PROOF OF THAT.
I HAVE MILLIONS OF FRIENDS WHO I
HEAR FROM THEM ALL THE TIME.
ITS POSSIBLE.
ITS POSSIBLE. DIDNT MEAN TO GO TO CHURCH, BUT
SOMETIMES YOU GOT TO GO TO
CHURCH.