TV won't be the same without Hoda Kotb

Have you noticed that when people say it’s “the end of an era,” rarely it is the end of an actual era? I see this all the time lately. A friend told me recently that Trader Joe’s discontinuing their truffle powder seasoning was the end of an era, and I had to stop myself from asking her, “Is it really?” When defining an era, we should examine times that the public at large is regularly conscious of, like the Cold War or Starbucks’ seasonal eggnog latte, which bowed from the chain’s menu in 2021 — RIP, end of an era, etc. Otherwise, we’re simply co-opting a popular phrase and diminishing its meaning, much in the way that Stan culture has removed all gravity from the word “iconic.” (No, Selena Gomez’s blue highlights at the Teen Vogue party are not iconic, despite many X accounts trying to convince us otherwise.)

But today, we’re facing a very real end of an era, and for a truly iconic figure to boot: Hoda Kotb. January 10 was Kotb’s final day as an anchor at NBC’s “Today Show,” after 17 years of spending time with viewers every morning and 26 years with the network. Kotb announced her departure last September, saying that when she turned 60 a few weeks prior, it was time for her to “turn the page and try something new.” In the following months, she bought a house in the suburbs and talked about how excited she was to wake up along with her two children, Haley and Hope, and see them off to school. The concept of family and togetherness is one Kotb always championed in her years at “Today,” and seeing her honor those values for herself was moving for both longtime viewers and her colleagues. “You have guts,” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie told Kotb. “For someone to leave at the top of their game, to leave something that’s wonderful, where it’s easy, comfortable, and say, ‘But I dream even bigger for myself’? You inspire me.”

For anyone who watched Kotb during her 17 years on “Today” — even for one, single morning — the outpouring of emotion over the news of her departure is no surprise. When Kotb joined “Today,” she brought a perceptible dose of passion to the show. She approached the subjects she covered with genuine empathy that previously seemed like it was missing from the show’s sometimes stuffy programming, where even the silliest segments felt rehearsed. There was an energy and a deeply rooted joy to her presence, perfectly suited to balancing out the often dour morning news.