Katie Couric Defends Matt Lauer As A ‘Decent’ Man Despite Sexual Misconduct Scandal

Many were shocked this week to see that Katie Couric defended her disgraced former “Today” show co-anchor Matt Lauer in her new memoir despite his sexual misconduct scandal that cost him job, marriage, and reputation.

Watch Couric discuss Lauer a few years ago in the video below.

Couric Defends Lauer

Couric explained in her book “Going There” that after spending nine years hosting “Today” with Lauer, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him after he was fired in 2017 for allegedly crossing the line with multiple women at NBC over the years.

She saw Lauer as a “decent” man, saying that it felt “heartless to abandon him,” according to Daily Mail. 

Couric said “my heart sank” when she heard that Lauer had been fired. She “couldn’t imagine” what going through the scandal was like for him. She also was questioning whether the allegations against her former co-host were just wild rumors.

One day after Lauer was fired, Couric sent him a text that read, “I am crushed. I love you and care about you deeply. I am here. Please let me know if you want to talk. There will be better days ahead.”

Lauer reportedly responded with a blowing kiss emoji. 

Related: Matt Lauer Reemerges To Shred Ronan Farrow For Manipulating Claims Against Him To Advance #MeToo

Couric Was Worried About Lauer 

Even after reading about all the “awful things” Lauer allegedly did, Couric worried about his well-being, saying that she feared he was “sleepless, haggard, depressed, maybe worse.”

She explained that it felt “heartless to abandon him, someone who’d been by my side, literally, for so many years.”

After coming to terms with the scandal, Couric concluded that he could be an “excellent professional partner, a good friend, and a predator.”

Earlier in the memoir, Couric admitted that she had “heard the whispers” about Lauer during her time at “Today,” recalling his wife calling the control room on one Saturday number asking for the number of a woman that she thought he was having sex with. 

On another occasion, Couric remembered Lauer sending one producer of the morning show an email in which he said he wanted to “spread butter on her thighs” and invited her to his office and ‘wear that skirt that came off so easily.”

Couric then realized that Lauer had been having sex with a production assistant with the same surname as the producer he emailed, and that he’d emailed her by mistake.

Related: Matt Lauer’s Secret George Bush Tattoo Is Out And The Comments Are Relentless

Times Were Different Back Then 

While Couric thought that what Lauer was doing was “gross,” she added that “the general rule at that time was: it’s none of your business.”

In the years since his firing, Lauer has kept a low profile, retreating to a life of privacy in the Hamptons. Few of his famous former friends have defended him, which made Couric’s comments all the more surprising. 

Despite Couric’s support, however, Lauer shouldn’t be expecting to make a comeback anytime soon, as his “cancellation” seems to be for life.