A new report from New York Magazine digs into the troubles NBC has faced with Brian Williams as of late, and the article claims the now-suspended “Nightly News” anchor was trying to land a different job that was more in the comedy genre.
The magazine claims that a few years back, Williams told NBC Universal CEO Steve Burke he wanted to take over “The Tonight Show” from Jay Leno. After his request was turned down, the magazine states Burke gifted Williams “Rock Center,” which ran for two seasons but was more of a news show than the variety show Williams had hoped for.
The article claims after that, Williams—still looking for a comedy role—turned to Les Moonves and asked to succeed David Letterman. The mag says CBS declined to comment.
NBC has had its hands full with Williams lately. It was revealed in early February that Williams had lied about his experiences while reporting in Iraq, and after a few days of criticism, the network suspended him for six months.
In the interim, Lester Holt has stepped in to anchor “Nightly News,” with Savannah Guthrie taking over as solo anchor one night when Holt was unavailable.
So far, ratings for the show have been up and “Nightly News” won the February Sweeps despite its ousted anchor.
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