NBC has decided Billy Bush won’t return to Today. In the aftermath of the Access Hollywood video that shook Donald Trump‘s presidential campaign, the network has announced Bush’s short tenure at Today has ended.
“Billy Bush will be leaving the Today show’s 9 a.m. hour, effective today,” NBC News SVP and Today show head Noah Oppenheim said in a memo sent to staffers Monday. “While he was a new member of the Today team, he was a valued colleague and longtime member of the broader NBC family. We wish him success as he goes forward.”
In a statement, Bush said: “I am deeply grateful for the conversations I’ve had with my daughters, and for all of the support from family, friends and colleagues. I look forward to what lies ahead.”
Bush was named co-host of Today’s third hour in August. He was suspended by the network Oct. 11, with Oppenheim writing at the time “there is simply no excuse for Billy’s language and behavior on that tape.”
Bush, who said in a Sirius Radio interview in August that his drive to avoid being the “new guy ruffling feathers” at Today led him to call his old producers at Access Hollywood when he got an exclusive interview with Ryan Lochte in Rio. The move did, in fact, ruffle feathers at the morning show.
Reports last week indicated that employees at Today were angered by the Trump tape, and the network did not see a way for him to return.