Carson Daly was looking for a new challenge in his long career in the media business. It will arrive on Saturday morning.
Daly will team up with Laura Jarrett, Joe Fryer and meteorologist Angie Lassman on NBC’s “Saturday Today” broadcast; is the latest attempt by one of the major broadcast networks to create special versions of its morning series that appeal to weekend viewers who have a little more time in the AM.
“If people are waking up with us, we want to respect that, and we want to give them something worth listening to,” says Jarrett, who joins “Today” in 2023, a year after moving from CNN to NBC News.
NBC, ABC, and CBS attempted to create weekend news programs that differed slightly from their main weekday programs. The Saturday broadcast of CBS’ “Saturday Morning” spotlights topics like food and music. ABC recently reshuffled its hosting teams by adding Rachel Scott and Rhiannon Ally to its weekend “Good Morning America” broadcasts.
NBC was encouraged by that vision on Sunday’s “Today” show, led by Willie Geist. The host offers a slower-paced “Today” hour and touches on headlines as needed, but also offers a more in-depth interview with a person of interest, among other features. Geist generally writes most of the series himself. NBC News attempted to turn Geist’s lengthy interviews into ticketed events; It’s a move that generates live media revenue.
But the addition of Daly brings someone with a different skill set to the front of the Saturday show. Jarrett’s previous co-host, Peter Alexander, had a long tenure as a Washington and White House correspondent. Daly gained a broader set of experiences early in his career, hosting MTV’s “TRL,” then hosting the early morning NBC show “Last Call” and hosting and executive producing “The Voice.”
During this time, he learned to stand out and conduct in-depth conversations with musicians, news producers, and entertainers. “I’ve always enjoyed long-form interviews,” says Daly, who studied Bob Costas and Greg Kinnear, who hosted late-night shows at NBC before his tenure began. “I have a natural curiosity,” he says, and often launches into a segment with “a thousand questions” he might want to ask a guest — if only “Today” had more time for lengthy interviews
Daly has been one of the important names of “Today” since 2013, when he joined as a kind of reporter and reported interesting developments on social media from the program’s “Orange Room”. These days, he’s more of a regular in the second hour of the weekday broadcast and is often seen speaking alongside Savannah Guthrie, Craig Melvin, Al Roker and other “Today” anchors.
A few months ago, he thought about how he could push himself and asked “Today” producers if they would let him anchor on days when others were off, even on holidays. “I have never been afraid to take on challenges,” Daly says. “I’m glad I got my neck out.”
In addition to his job as senior legal correspondent for NBC News, Jarrett also enjoys time on the “Today” show. Saturday viewers can still expect headlines, he says. “We will continue to do the news. We will continue to do special news when necessary,” he says.
Jarrett “has a style on TV that I not only respect, but enjoy watching, and so I think I’ll learn a lot,” Daly says.
Daly takes on his new duties as the holiday season approaches; it’s a cycle that often brings a broader audience to “Today.” Jarrett says on Saturday, viewers will be able to check out the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree coming to New York, as well as the official unveiling of a “new era” for the Saturday program.