Ann Curry gets dumped at 'Today'; is she really to blame?

Ann Curry became the scapegoat at NBC’s stalwart morning show, Today, for its faltering ratings. Yes, the popular morning show is facing its biggest challenge in the ratings from ABC's now resurging Good Morning America -Today hadn't lost a week in the ratings since 1996 but this spring lost four times- but the complaint is she never really clicked with co-host Matt Lauer, so she’s got to go. Which may be true, but is that Curry’s fault? I mean, could the egotistical Lauer and that laughable idiot Al Roker be also part of the problem? Maybe what she brought to the table was some serious journalism, while NBC and –apparently- the rest of America wanted tabloid gossip. 

Curry has always come off as an intelligent, independent minded journalist. She is articulate, watchable and coy. She seems witty and fun, as well -like she would be fun party goer. Matt Lauer is the complete opposite. But he’s a man, and in this male dominated world, he’ll be given the pass (and while he just signed a new contract, I’m guess legal thought it would be easier- and cheaper- to get rid of Curry than Lauer). 

To me, there is a huge accountability issue here. Somehow, because the ratings slid began this spring, Curry is solely responsible for it, while Roker and Lauer get contract renewals –and thus passes. Is this logical, is this right? Meanwhile, then there is harpy’s like Kathie Lee Gifford, who continues to make one idiotic blunder after another, but she gets a free pass as well.

If anything, this latest problem at NBC is indicative at what’s wrong at the broadcast network and with the American public as it news and entertainment –infotainment as Homer Simpsons called it- are blurred. The sense is that news, hard hitting, non-exploitive news, is regulated to the dust bin of history in favor of them showing us the latest trends on Twitter, what the fucking Kardashians are doing today, and what kooky place Matt Lauer is at today.

NBC and the Today show producers showed their true colors by dumping Curry, that ratings are, and always will be, the barometer in which fire someone from “news” shows like this. At least if your female, anyways. 

I will agree chemistry is part of these shows, but it should not be the first line of reason for firing someone. And she was fired –after what has been an awkward few weeks- so let’s make that clear. But she did get a booby prize: “They’re giving me some fancy new titles (her one true dig at NBC) which essentially mean I’m going to get tickets to every big story we want to cover.” Instead of letting her go at NBC completely, they gave her this Anchor at Large status, which is meaningless in the big picture. They just didn’t want her going to a rival network (I’m sure ABC would love to have her) and further damaging Today’s ratings.

It’s hard to see people getting dumped for all the wrong reasons, and Ann Curry’s tenure at Today ended in such a stupid way. She deserved better and I hope when her contract is up at NBC, she does give the peacock network the middle finger and jump ship to a network at appreciates her intelligence, her charm and, more importantly, the real news a large portion of us care about.