A man was arrested after breaking on to the set of NBC’s Today show on Thursday morning and allegedly hurling a racial slur at a host.
NYPD officers at New York’s midtown north precinct responded to a report of a disorderly person at the show’s 30 Rockefeller Center studios shortly after 9am.
The man was able to slip past security and make his way on to the set, where he reportedly lunged at host Craig Melvin and shouted a racial slur.
An NYPD statement said that at 9.19am, “it was reported to officers that there was a disorderly person inside 30 Rockefeller Center, within the confines of the Midtown North Precinct. Officers responded and placed an unidentified individual into custody.”
The statement added that no injuries were reported and the investigation was continuing.
Authorities believe that the man was able to sneak in through a secured area and asked staff for Al Roker, the Today show’s longtime weatherman who, like Melvin, is Black. When he couldn’t find Roker, he turned his attention to Melvin, per a police official’s statement reported by CNN.
Both Roker and Melvin were back on air as normal just 15 minutes after the man was removed from set. Neither mentioned the incident on air.
Earlier this year, NBC stepped up security on the Today show after co-host Savannah Guthrie’s mother was abducted, according to two anonymous sources at the network.
This morning, Guthrie announced on air that she would be stepping away from the Today show for a few weeks to film a new gameshow based on the popular Wordle game. Her mother Nancy Guthrie remains missing after she was taken from her Arizona home on 1 February.
Melvin has been an anchor on the Today show since 2018 and was promoted to co-anchor alongside Guthrie in January 2025.
The Guardian has approached the Today show and a representative for Melvin for comment.
