Chuck Todd, the former moderator of “Meet the Press,” is leaving NBC News.
Todd, who has become a noticeably less visible presence on the network after he was replaced as “Meet the Press” moderator by Kristen Welker in 2023 after nine years in the chair, announced he would exit NBC on Friday.
“Today is my last day… at NBC,” Todd said on his podcast.
“I am leaving a bit earlier than we had all originally planned, but there is a reason for it. I’m pretty excited by a few new projects that are on the cusp,” Todd added. “The podcast is coming with me and it’s not going away.”
Todd said he would go on a “little hiatus” and then select a new home for the podcast.
NBC’S CHUCK TODD HAS BEEN MEETING WITH OTHER NEWS ORGANIZATIONS, PLANS TO LEAVE NETWORK: REPORT
Todd, who has been at the heart of NBC News’ political coverage for 18 years, first joined the network in 2007. There has been widespread speculation that Todd was seeking a new opportunity after seeing his role at NBC get scaled back in recent years.
“We’re grateful for Chuck’s many contributions to our political coverage during his nearly two-decade career at NBC News and for his deep commitment to Meet the Press and its enduring legacy. We wish him all the best in his next endeavors,” an NBC News spokesperson told Variety.
NBC News did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment.
CHUCK TODD SAYS ABC ‘ABANDONED’ GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS IN SETTLING WITH TRUMP
Todd has not held back from criticizing media executives, including his now-former NBC bosses, in recent months.
In December, the outspoken Todd said he would have felt “abandoned” if he were George Stephanopoulos during the legal dispute that led to ABC News settling with then-President-elect Donald Trump for a whopping $15 million.
“This was stunning to me and absolutely a gut punch to anybody that works at a major media company, because I think it does set a precedent that is going to be very difficult to get out from under potentially,” Todd told Substacker Chris Cillizza.
Todd also notably criticized NBC News for hiring former Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel as an analyst in March 2024. He openly questioned his bosses for hiring McDaniel and for putting Welker in the awkward position of interviewing her about past 2020 election rhetoric.
“Let me deal with the elephant in the room,” Todd told Welker in March. “I think our bosses owe you an apology for putting you in this situation, because I don’t know what to believe.”
Todd said many of the network’s dealings with the RNC under McDaniel’s leadership “had been met with gaslighting” and “character assassination,” and he referred to the internal tumult by journalists at NBC News who were apoplectic over McDaniel’s hiring. McDaniel’s contract was terminated less than a week later.
This is a developing story, more to come…
Fox News Digital’s Jeffrey Clark and Joshua Q. Nelson contributed to this report.