‘NBC Nightly News’ anchor Tom Llamas on why the evening news still matters

Once upon a time, the evening network news — with legendary anchors such as Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather, Peter Jennings and Tom Brokaw — attracted a combined 60 or 70 million viewers.

These days, that number is significantly smaller. But it remains meaningful.

Today’s combined audience for the evening news on ABC, CBS and NBC is in the 15 to 20 million range. And in a world of cable and streaming, that many people sitting down to watch the evening news still makes it appointment television for news consumers.

That was among the many topics I discussed with “NBC Nightly News” anchor Tom Llamas in the latest episode of “The Poynter Report Podcast.”

Llamas took over for Lester Holt as anchor and managing editor of the “NBC Nightly News” last June, becoming the first Latino anchor to lead a weekday network evening newscast in the U.S. In our conversation, Llamas and I talked about his background, how he got started in the news business, why he continues to host a newscast (“Top Story with Tom Llamas”) on NBC NOW, and what a day in the life is like for a network news anchor.

And I asked him: What is the role of evening news these days?

Llamas told me, “They turn to us because they want to know the truth. They want to make sense of their day. They’ve been hit with all kinds of things — from text messages from friends, from Facebook messages, from other relatives, that may or may not be true, to everything they’ve read online. And then there’s other people — it’s a tradition for them. They come home, they get the kids ready for bed, or they’re getting ready for dinner, and they watch the nightly news.”

The news is like coffee, Llamas told me.

“There’s all types of coffee out there, and people like their coffee a certain way, and once they have their coffee, it's kind of like their thing,” Llamas said. “Maybe you make drip in the morning. Maybe you're an espresso guy. You like getting really niche in how you make your coffee. But in America, because of capitalism, you have a lot of choices. And I think the same is true with news. And so there’s people who like their news a certain way, and they love the evening news, and they love that format.”

Aside from watching on YouTube, you can also find the show on Apple, Spotify, and most places where you find podcasts.

Before we move on, it should be noted that my podcast recording with Llamas was before the horrible news that the mother of Savannah Guthrie, co-host of NBC’s “Today” show, had gone missing. Now onto that story.

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Savannah Guthrie update

This is horrific. Police now are saying the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie was taken from her Arizona home against her will in a “possible kidnapping or abduction.” Nancy Guthrie was last seen on the night of Jan. 31 at her home near Tucson and was reported missing at noon on Feb. 1 by her family. Nancy Guthrie does not suffer from any cognitive issues, but does have limited mobility and relies on medication that can be fatal if not received within 24 hours, authorities said.

In a social media post, Savannah Guthrie asked for prayers to bring her mother home safely. She has not been on the “Today” show this week. She was supposed to head to Italy for NBC’s coverage of the Olympics, which begin this week. But, obviously, those plans have changed. Guthrie will not be a part of the network’s coverage of the Winter Games.

Earlier this week, “NBC Nightly News” anchor Tom Llamas ended the newscast by saying, “If you know Savannah, then you know her mom — because she raised her, through some very tough times. Savannah has shared that it was her mother who taught her the power of prayer, the types of prayers that make you get on your knees and pray for God’s protection. Savannah and her family need your prayers tonight. They also need your help. Savannah, we know how strong you are, we are praying, and we won’t stop until you find her.”

Sheriff Chris Nanos said during a news conference on Tuesday that it wasn’t clear if Nancy Guthrie’s abduction was targeted or random. He said, “We do believe that Nancy was taken from her home against her will, and that’s where we’re at.”

Llamas to interview Trump

The tradition of the Super Bowl interview with the president is back.

NBC is hosting this Sunday’s big game. That means “Nightly News” anchor Tom Llamas will interview Donald Trump. Llamas will actually interview Trump at the White House today. A portion of the interview will air on tonight’s “Nightly News” at 6:30 p.m. Eastern and on “Top Story with Tom Llamas” on NBC News NOW at 7 p.m. Eastern.

A separate portion of the interview will air during NBC’s Super Bowl pregame show on Sunday.

Networks interviewing the president before the Super Bowl used to be an annual tradition, but it has been scattered in recent years. The presidential Super Bowl interview started in 2004 when then-President George W. Bush was interviewed by CBS sports broadcaster Jim Nantz. That interview, which lasted only four minutes, was not hard-hitting, nor was it supposed to be.

When Barack Obama became president, networks started assigning news journalists to conduct interviews that were partly about politics and partly about football. Obama did the interview with the host network every year of his presidency.

Then came Trump’s first term. He skipped the interview with NBC and Lester Holt in 2018. Joe Biden did the interview in his first two years as president with CBS and NBC. However, in the final two years of his presidency, he did not do the interview. Those would have been with Fox and then CBS.

Last year, Trump sat down with Fox’s Bret Baier.

Post bracing for cuts?

Puck’s Dylan Byers reports that the long-rumored layoffs at The Washington Post will be announced today.

For the past couple of weeks, there have been reports that the Post would slash hundreds of jobs. The foreign desk is expected to undergo severe cuts, and there have been rumors that the Post will eliminate the sports department.

Byers wrote in his social media post, “As we've reported, WaPo is expected to cut *hundreds* of jobs and eliminate sections, instead focusing on core areas like politics & nat'l security.”

Since reports about the cuts came out in recent weeks, Post journalists have pleaded with the paper’s owner, Jeff Bezos, to reconsider. They sent personal letters and started a social media campaign using the hashtag #SaveThePost.

However, The Guardian’s Jeremy Barr wrote this week: “Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos stays silent as employees brace for cuts.”

Barr wrote, “(A) Post staffer described the mood at the paper as ‘funereal’, with many expecting the cuts to come in the next few days – though the publication still has not acknowledged or confirmed that anything is happening. A rally to protest the cuts has been scheduled for outside the Post’s headquarters on Thursday.”

But, by Thursday, it appears the cuts will have already been made.

Lemon speaks out

Don Lemon — the former CNN anchor who is now an independent journalist — appeared on Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night ABC show on Monday and talked about his recent arrest for his coverage of an anti-ICE protest in Minnesota.

Lemon was charged with violating churchgoers’ constitutional right to worship when he entered a church with protesters who were demonstrating against the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Lemon appeared to have been there merely to report on the situation.

Lemon told Kimmel, “There’s a lot that I cannot say. But what I will say is that I’m not a protester. I went there to be a journalist. I went there to chronicle and document and record what was happening. … I do think that there is a difference between a protester and a journalist.”

When asked how he was feeling, Lemon said, “I don’t know. That’s an honest answer. I’m OK. I’m not going to let them steal my joy, but this is very serious. These are federal criminal charges.”

Lemon was one of four people arrested, including Georgia Fort, another independent journalist.

Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi appeared on Fox News on Monday night and said, “These people committed a crime under the FACE Act and they will be held accountable.”

Disney’s new boss

Disney is getting a new CEO, and it’s no surprise. Josh D’Amaro, who oversees Disney’s parks business, was voted unanimously by the board to replace Bob Iger, who is stepping down. The 54-year-old D’Amaro, who has been with Disney for 28 years, is expected to step into his new job on March 28. He will also become a member of the Disney board.

Iger, 74, will serve as a senior adviser and board member until his retirement on Dec. 31.

The New York Times’ Brooks Barnes reported that D’Amaro has little expertise in movies and television. However, Barnes wrote, “Mr. D’Amaro most recently served as chairman of Disney Experiences, a division with $36 billion in annual revenue that includes theme parks, a fast-growing cruise line and consumer products, including video games. Mr. D’Amaro’s unit made up roughly 60 percent of Disney’s profit last year: Disney, in some ways, has become more of a travel company than a media one.”

The Los Angeles Times’ Meg James and Samantha Masunaga wrote, “D’Amaro … is respected on Wall Street and has long been a favorite among legions of Disney superfans who view him as a charismatic cheerleader for Mickey Mouse, Buzz Lightyear and other inhabitants of the Magic Kingdom. Within Disney, D’Amaro is known for his consensus-building style, his mastery of Disney’s distinct culture and for safeguarding its beloved brands.”

They added, “He will oversee all of Disney and its workforce of 230,000 as the entertainment colossus tries to soar in the streaming age amid the erosion of the company’s once-mighty legacy cable TV business and a punishing theatrical business. He also must balance the promise of artificial intelligence without allowing it to destroy the value of Disney’s characters and movie franchises. A further challenge is to help Disney navigate the nation’s divisive political landscape.”

Disney board chairman James Gorman told the Los Angeles Times, “All of the directors became very comfortable with Josh’s skills, aptitude and readiness. Readiness was key, and that’s why we moved at this time. We were ready, Bob was ready to step aside, and he felt like Josh was ready as well as Dana and the whole team.”

The “Dana” that Gorman referred to is Dana Walden, co-chair of Disney Entertainment. She was named the company’s president and chief creative officer. Walden also had been considered a candidate for the top job, but D’Amaro had unanimous support from the board.

In a statement, Iger said, “Josh D’Amaro is an exceptional leader and the right person to become our next CEO. He has an instinctive appreciation of the Disney brand, and a deep understanding of what resonates with our audiences, paired with the rigor and attention to detail required to deliver some of our most ambitious projects.”

Also, here’s Awful Announcing’s Ben Axelrod with “What does Josh D’Amaro becoming Disney CEO mean for ESPN?”

Continuing the fight

Back in 2022, President Donald Trump filed a defamation lawsuit against the Pulitzer Prize Board. The New York Times and The Washington Post had won Pulitzers for their coverage of connections between Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia. Trump called it a “now-debunked theory” and claimed the board harmed him when it issued a statement standing by its awards to the Times and Post.

But the Pulitzer Prize Board has been fighting back. Last month in Florida, the board filed a discovery request, demanding that Trump provide documents and information that back up his claims that he suffered damages or reputational harm.

Then late last week, the board filed another discovery request.

Bloomberg Law’s Alex Ebert wrote, “An unredacted copy of Robert Mueller’s report into Russian election interference. Internal communications between the Donald Trump White House and Russians. Details of Trump’s abandoned Moscow tower deal. Those and other confidential records at the heart of Trump’s ties to one of America’s biggest international adversaries were demanded Friday morning by the Pulitzer Prize Board.”

A spokesperson for the Pulitzer Prize Board said in a statement, “Just like any other plaintiff, the President must articulate and prove his claims with evidence. This filing is another standard step in the discovery process that is necessary to assess the veracity of the President’s allegation that the Board’s 2022 statement implied that the President colluded with Russia. The Pulitzer Board will not be intimidated by the President and will continue to defend the First Amendment.”

Check out Ebert’s story for more details.

What about Bad Bunny?

The selection of Bad Bunny as this year’s Super Bowl halftime main performer has been a controversial one, entirely because many conservatives and MAGA-types have had a meltdown about it. That includes President Donald Trump.

Of course, Bad Bunny is a perfectly logical choice. First off, he’s the most-streamed artist in the world. And last weekend, he won three Grammy Awards, including for Album of the Year. So he’s extremely popular and talented. What else would you want?

In one of his acceptance speeches at the Grammys, Bad Bunny, a native of Puerto Rico, spoke out against immigration raids. He said, “Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say: ICE out! We’re not savages, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans. I know it’s tough not to hate on these days, and I was thinking, sometimes we get contaminados — I don’t know how to say that in English — the hate gets more powerful with more hate. The only thing that is more powerful than hate is love. So, please, we need to be different. If we fight, we have to do it with love.”

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell addressed Bad Bunny’s upcoming performance at the Super Bowl on Tuesday, telling reporters, “Listen, Bad Bunny is, and I think that was demonstrated (Sunday) night (at the Grammys), one of the great artists in the world. That’s one of the reasons we chose him. But the other reason is he understood the platform he was on, and that this platform is used to unite people and to be able to bring people together with their creativity, with their talent, and to be able to use this moment to do that. I think artists in the past have done that, I think Bad Bunny understands that, and I think he’ll have a great performance.”

Meanwhile, The Athletic ran a piece this week based on an anonymous NFL player survey. The outlet asked players how they felt about Bad Bunny performing at this year’s Super Bowl.

What stood out immediately was an editor’s note at the top of the story that read: “This story has been updated to clarify that Bad Bunny is an American citizen. In addition, a quote from a player was deleted from this story because it did not meet the standards of The Athletic.”

In addition, one player, who apparently missed the day they taught civics in school, said, “I don’t even know who Bad Bunny is. I always think it should be an American. I think they’re trying too hard with this international stuff.”

As The Athletic noted, “Bad Bunny is from Puerto Rico, which is part of the United States. He is an American citizen.”

Thankfully, there were others who supported the selection, including one who said, “I’ve heard his music obviously, but I don’t speak Spanish so I’m not a big fan. But I do think it’s cool to have him, because America is based on diversity. America was built on immigration. So I feel like having him just furthers that American dream. I like it. I like the choice.”

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Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected].

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