Peter Alexander has announced that he will be leaving the TODAY Show following 22 years at the network. The news was announced via the NBC show’s Instagram on March 28.
The post read: “Peter Alexander is leaving NBC News after 22 years at the network, which includes his longtime role as co-host of Saturday TODAY.
“Peter Alexander joined Saturday TODAY in October 2018, and in 2021, he was named NBC’s co-chief White House correspondent alongside Kristen Welker. Alexander and Welker then together hosted Saturday TODAY for three years, from 2020 to 2023, until Welker succeeded Chuck Todd as moderator of NBC’s Meet the Press. Since then, he’s sat at the anchor desk with Laura Jarrett, who joined NBC in January 2023 as a senior legal correspondent.”
The social media post also featured a personal statement from Peter alongside a series of photographs from his time on the network. “I have had the most incredible experience over 22 years with NBC News – from Baghdad to Banda Aceh, Burbank to Beijing – always alongside the best, most professional and most dedicated journalists in the business.”
Peter’s co-star, Laura, also shared an emotional message in response to the news of his departure. “Peter: We love you, we are going to miss you. You are a brilliant journalist. You are a good and decent man, and you are an extraordinary father. You only get one shot to be Ava and Emma’s dad…they are lucky to have you as their father.”
Peter shares two daughters, Ava and Emma, with his wife, Alison Starling. During the March 28 episode, Peter announced his exit from the show and shared that he wants to spend more time with his two daughters and “challenge himself with something new.”
“I’ve been away from home more than 80 nights in the last seven months. More than 200 Friday nights away from my family in the last seven years,” he said. “So, in this limited window before my daughters lose interest in hanging out with me…I’m eager to carve out a better balance between my personal and professional lives.”
© Helen Healey/NBC via Getty ImageThe veteran journalist landed his big break in 2004 when he scored an interview with Fidel Castro, who was president of Cuba at the time. Recalling the big moment on TODAY in celebration of his two decades with NBC, Peter said in 2024: “That was the beginning of a ride that I never imagined, could only have dreamed of and couldn’t be more grateful for.”
“What I learned the most is what it means to be a storyteller,” he said. “I really feel like we have a higher responsibility doing this for a living. Being journalists, you have the trust of the audience, the trust of the people whose stories you’re telling. That’s something that I take so seriously,” added the journalist.
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