Savannah Guthrie is staying at NBC News. The longtime “Today” co-anchor has extended her contract with the network, The Associated Press reported on Thursday, November 13.
The AP’s confirmation came from a person close to the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal had not yet been made public. NBC had not formally announced the extension when the story ran, and the length of the new contract was not disclosed.
Guthrie, 54, has been with the network for more than 15 years. She joined “Today” in 2011 and became one of its main co-anchors in 2012.
She currently shares the anchor desk with Craig Melvin. She is also a primary anchor of NBC’s election coverage, most recently anchoring the network’s coverage of last week’s midterm elections.
AP national writer Jocelyn Noveck described her as one of morning television’s most enduring and popular personalities.
The contract news arrives during a deeply painful year for Guthrie. Her mother, Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home just outside Tucson, Arizona, on January 31 and was reported missing the following day. Authorities believe she was kidnapped or otherwise taken against her will. No suspects have been arrested.
In July, authorities released two ransom notes that had been sent to a Tucson television station in the days after the disappearance.
The first, from February 2, said Nancy Guthrie was safe but scared and would be released unharmed once her captors received $4 million in cryptocurrency. The second, from February 6, stated that she had died shortly after she was kidnapped.
Guthrie and her family have shared their pain and pleaded for information in a series of social media videos.
In her most recent Instagram post, she shared an old drawing by her daughter, Vale, showing an umbrella amid falling raindrops, and wrote that it “says so much about how I feel.” The post also included a smiling photo of her mother.
Guthrie wrote that the family tries to stay strong for their young children while they “ache for her.” She told followers the reward is still available and urged anyone with information to come forward, so the family can give her mother the dignity she deserves. The AP report did not state the amount of the reward.
For now, Guthrie’s place at the “Today” desk appears settled, even as the search for answers about her mother continues.
