Chuck Todd is leaving NBC

CNN
 — 

Chuck Todd, former moderator of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” is leaving the network after nearly 20 years.

In an internal memo on Friday, Todd thanked his longtime colleagues and said he has a “few new projects” in the works, signaling a desire for a more entrepreneurial phase of his career. For that reason, he said he is leaving the network a number of months before his NBC contract was set to expire.

Todd said NBC is allowing him to take his twice-a-week podcast franchise, “The ChuckToddcast,” to a new distributor.

For about a decade, Todd was one of the most prominent voices at NBC News, covering the political rise of Donald Trump and the Democratic response. He helmed “Meet the Press” from 2014 until 2023.

Todd was outspoken about the corrosive impacts of Trump-era lies and indecency — and was ridiculed by Trump and others for it.

In 2023, after a management change atop NBC News, Todd stepped down from “Meet the Press” and Kristen Welker took over his role.

Todd said it was important not to “overstay” his welcome — a striking message for a Washington crowd full of elderly politicos. “I’d rather leave a little bit too soon than stay a tad too long,” he added.

Todd saw his air time diminished in recent years, though he remained a prominent part of political and Election Night coverage last November.

In a statement on Friday NBC News said, “We’re grateful for Chuck’s many contributions to our political coverage during his nearly two-decade career at NBC News and for his deep commitment to ‘Meet the Press’ and its enduring legacy. We wish him all the best in his next endeavors.”

In his memo, Todd said, “The media has a lot of work to do to win back the trust of viewers/listeners/readers and I’m convinced the best place to start is from the bottom up,” with local instead of national media.

“This is a ripe moment,” he added. “The only way to fix this information ecosystem is to stop whining about the various ways the social media companies are manipulating things and instead roll up our collective sleeves and start with local.”