In a fairly shocking move, it looks as if NBC is opting to keep Brian Williams on staff following his suspension this past winter. The former Nightly News anchor will not be returning to his NBC post, however, as reports indicate he will be taking on a new role within the company, one that doesn’t look as if it will necessarily involve an anchor desk.
So far, the details surrounding Williams’ new role with NBC are still being kept underwraps, but since the journalist will not be returning to NBC Nightly News, it is being reported that fill-in Lester Holt will be taking over the role full time. According to THR, Williams could instead be asked to handle some “breaking news” over at MSNBC, with the outlet citing the network has been dealing with ratings issues in recent months.
Although Brian Williams is expected to come back, reports indicate his return has not been going particularly smoothly. It’s been months since the man has been on the air,and NBC wants Williams to apologize before he returns to the air following the end of his six-month suspension without pay. However, he’s reportedly not very keen to apologize for inaccuracies regarding a story he had been repeating since 2003.
This whole brouhaha stems from an incident that occurred earlier this year in which outlets and members of the military began calling out Brian Williams for inaccuracies regarding a story he has repeated about covering the invasion in Iraq in 2003. Williams has stated he was in a convoy of helicopters when his own was hit by RPG fire, but other members of the military that were also involved in the same incident have stated Williams’ helicopter was not affected in the manner in which he described. Williams could not seem to get the details straight regarding the story and eventually cancelled appearances and took some time off before NBC ultimately elected to suspend him.
In the months since several of Williams’ reports were deemed to be factually inaccurate, the man has taken a career beating in popular opinion, having a slew of memes devoted to him on the internet. (Some are more humorous than others.)
It’ll likely be a long, tough slog back to credibility once again, but if Williams has anything going for him, it’s being likeable. Even if credibility takes the backseat to likeability on occasion.
