NBC blasts Natalie Morales, Willie Geist firing rumors

Two days after the abrupt firing of a top "Today" show executive, NBC News debunked reports Tuesday that claimed a handful of prominent on-air personnel had also been ousted.

"In response to the false rumors that have been circulated about our anchor team, NBC wants to be absolutely clear: The rumors are wrong -- period," said NBC News chief Deborah Turness in a statement.

The highly unusual refutation came in the wake of an Us Weekly report on its website Wednesday morning that said Willie Geist and Natalie Morales had been fired and were talking to other networks about employment (Geist at CBS and Morales at ABC). Both are among the show's most visible figures, and Geist also has a prominent role on sister network MSNBC's "Morning Joe." The report then noted that with the ouster of a top "Today" executive -- Jamie Horowitz -- who had sought their firing, they may be staying after all.

Horowitz, a star producer at ESPN who had been hired last May to shake up "Today," was fired late Monday -- an embarrassment for Turness and others at the network who had vigorously recruited him.

Turness' statement added, "The entire 'Today' show anchor team -- Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker, Natalie Morales, Willie Geist, Carson Daly, Tamron Hall, Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb -- are incredibly talented, valued and have our support."

By Verne J Gay

Verne.Gay@newsday.com@vernejgay

Verne J Gay is the television critic