Lester Holt Leaving ‘NBC Nightly News’ After 10 Years in Shocking Shake-Up: What’s Next?

Lester Holt‘s time as the anchor of NBC Nightly News is coming to an end. The journalist announced on Monday, February 24, that he will be stepping down from the position amid the network’s recent shake-ups.
“After 10 years, 17 if you include my years on the weekends, the time has come for me to step away from my role as anchor of Nightly News,” Holt said in a statement. “It has truly been the honor of a lifetime to work with each of you every day, keeping journalism as our true north and our viewers at the center of everything we do.” The date of Holt’s last show has not been confirmed, but it will be sometime this summer.
However, Holt’s tenure at NBC won’t be coming to an end completely. “Before we play the walk off music, I have another announcement,” he continued. “I’m excited to report I will be continuing as anchor of Dateline NBC, but for the first time in a full time capacity whereby I will be expanding my footprint on the broadcast and crafting Dateline hours on subjects I care deeply about. I am thrilled to be able to work more closely with my enormously talented friends at Dateline as the broadcast continues to grow and attract new viewers in new places.”
Holt joined NBC News as a correspondent in 2000. From 2003-2015, he served as co-anchor for Weekend Today, and he was the NBC Nightly News weekend anchor from 2007-2015. After serving as the interim anchor on NBC Nightly News from February-June 2015, he permanently took on the role on June 22, 2015. He’s been anchoring Dateline NBC since 2011 as well.
The veteran reporter’s exit from Nightly News follows Chuck Todd‘s departure from NBC News and Andrea Mitchell‘s decision to leave her MSNBC daytime show. Joy Reid and Alex Wagner‘s weeknight primetime shows are also reportedly being cut on MSNBC.
NBC Nightly News, Weeknights, 6:30/5:30c, NBC