In an Esquire What I’ve Learned, “Today” anchor Matt Lauer talks about being a father, being a son, fishing, his interview style and what happens “when you punch a guy with four Budweisers in him.” He also talks about the media coverage of him and his colleague, Ann Curry.
Over the course of twenty years that I’ve been at NBC, I have never seen the amount of money I make reported correctly by the media.
The way the media treated what happened with Ann Curry was a disappointing learning experience. I was disappointed by the laziness of the media, the willingness to read a rumor, repeat that rumor, and treat it as a fact. And yet, what were my options? Does anyone want to see a person who’s making the money that the newspapers say I’m making complaining, “Woe is me, my life is terrible, and people are being unfair”? No one would’ve had any patience for that. I wouldn’t have any patience for that. So you just shut up and go about doing your job and hope that people who know you well — your friends and your family — know what’s true.
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