NBCs Chuck Todd announces he is leaving Meet the Press
NBCs Chuck Todd announced on Sunday that he is leaving "Meet the Press" and that Kristen Welker would be taking over as host.
NBC's Chuck Todd announced on Sunday that he would walk away from "Meet the Press" as the show has struggled to outdraw rival programs on ABC and CBS.
Todd noted that he would "rather leave a little bit too soon than stay a tad bit too long," when announcing he would exit the program later this year. Todd’s "Meet the Press" has averaged 2.5 million viewers in 2023, to finish behind 2.6 million average viewers for ABC’s "This Week" and 2.9 million for CBS’ "Face the Nation."
The outgoing moderator is also in third place among the key demographic of adults age 25-54, which is coveted by advertisers. "Meet the Press" averaged 468,000 demo viewers while "This Week" drew 489,000 and "Face the Nation" finished with 517,000.
Todd’s "Meet the Press" ranks below "This Week" and "Face the Nation" among the most-recent episodes, too.
NBCs Chuck Todd announced Sunday that it would be his "final summer" at "Meet the Press." (Screenshot/NBC/MeetThePress)
CBS’ "Face the Nation" averaged 2.6 million viewers in May, while "This Week" managed 2.5 million average viewers. Over the same time period, "Meet the Press" settled for an average audience of 2.2 million viewers.
Among the demo, "Face the Nation" averaged 482,000 viewers during May compared to 451,000 for "This Week" and 406,000 for "Meet the Press."
Todd, who took over as "Meet the Press" moderator in 2014, held the No. 1 spot among the advertiser-coveted demo for many years before dropping in recent seasons. He plans to stay with NBC.
Rep. Byron Donalds joins NBCs Chuck Todd during "Meet the Press." (Screenshot/NBC/MeetThePress)
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"While today is not my final show, this is going to be my final summer here at ‘Meet the Press.' It’s been an amazing nearly decade-long run. I’m really proud of what this team and I have built over the last decade and frankly the last 15-plus years that I’ve been here at NBC, which also includes my time as political director. I’ve loved so much of this job, helping to explain America to Washington and explain Washington to America," Todd said at the end of Sunday's show.
Todd applauded the program's accomplishments over the years and added that the "key to survival" was for leaders "not to overstay their welcome."
"I’d rather leave a little bit too soon than stay a tad bit too long. I’ve had two amazing professional chapters, and I have plans for my next chapter, including some projects right here at NBC News that I’ve been very focused on, among them docuseries and some docudramas focused on trying to educate the public better, bridge our divides, pierce our political bubbles," he said.
NBCs Chief White House correspondent Kristen Welker will moderate "Meet the Press" once Chuck Todd exits. (William B. Plowman/NBC)
"This is also an important time for me personally. I’ve let work consume me for nearly 30 years. I can’t remember the last time I didn’t wake up before 5:00 Or 6:00 a.m.," Todd continued. "And I’ve watched too many friends and family let work consume them before it was too late, I promised my family I wouldn’t do that."
Todd announced NBC's Chief White House correspondent Kristen Welker would succeed him. Welker moderated the final debate between President Biden and Donald Trump in 2020 and hosts "Weekend Today" on NBC News.
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