As Bob Costas continues to recover from his pink eye infection, it means another night of substitute host. Matt Lauer, tapped from the Today Show has hosted since Tuesday. NBC is giving him a night off so in his place comes another person from Today to pinch hit for Bob.
Former Today co-host Meredith Vieira will sit in Bob’s chair tonight. It marks television history as Viera becomes the first woman to host an Olympics primetime program solo.
In 1992, CBS had Paula Zahn co-host its primetime broadcast with Tim McCarver, a pairing that had no chemistry whatsoever.
Vieira won’t have a co-host and will introduce each event.
Once again, NBC Olympics Executive a Producer Jim Bell is going to his old Today stomping grounds to bring in a sub for Costas. And before you wonder why couldn’t Bell use Rebecca Lowe who’s been hosting the early morning shift on NBCSN, I again remind you that NBC is marketing the Olympics to the Today Show audience so while you may think this is outside the box, it really isn’t.
Vieira has been an NBC News correspondent since leaving Today in 2012.
