I see his wife and ex-wife are now sticking up for him. But I assume it is in their financial best interest to do so. A good severance settlement likely means more financial comfort for them. They certainly will be concerned that he would be toxic to hire and may not work again in the business.
Does anyone ever see him working anywhere again?
@intparent I seriously doubt his ex-wife receives any alimony or other money from him. They were divorced more than 20 years ago, they didn’t have kids, and she remarried. Moreover, she has had her own successful career.
If he wants to work and he didn’t or doesn’t sign some sort of Noncompete i can see him working again for someone, maybe Olympic coverage for someone…
Sadly the average human has a short memory about these things. He will work again and if he behaves or covers something exciting enough, he may even be a hero again.
I guessed he got a payment based on past firings of high profile men in multi-million contracts. Lastly, NBC has to have some responsibility here. They released a statement saying they never heard complaints before and women are saying we complained and you ignored us. NBC looks horrible right now. Hush money may be flowing rapidly right now.
@IfYouOnlyKnew I don’t think he works again in anything significant. NBC said they never heard complaints before and then nuanced that to “current management” never knew about complaints. So they know they knew.
David Letterman had a scandal years ago and apologized and kept his job. I wonder if he would have been terminated if that had happened now. The climate has definitely changed with all these new allegations coming out with so many people.
IIRC, the NBC’s statement was very carefully worded by their attorneys. There was something like “the current management have not received any complaints” implying that the complaints must have been swept under the rug by someone prior to them and they had no knowledge.
Cross-posted with @gearmom 
I don’t have time to look up the years the accusations occurred but those and his wife’s threat of divorce and he may well have cleaned up his act in the last couple years enough that some entity might be happy to give him an opportunity. People get fired everyday for all kinds of reasons and that doesn’t stop their lives.
@momofthreeboys Well we’ll have to see how this round of sex pests are treated. Harvey Weinstein thinks he’s coming back too. It isn’t like Matt is a great talent. Plenty of young, less expensive options champing at the bit to get a job.
I am a pragmatic person…Time will tell.
Wasn’t Letterman being blackmailed, so he came clean himself? And he’d been having affairs with staffers, but I never heard any of it wasn’t consensual (I realize there is a power imbalance, but I don’t think anyone ce out and made accusations of harrassment), So it is a little different.
I’m pragmatic too. Sexually assaulters and harrassers need not apply. Too many people fighting for these covetted positions.
I imagine Matt doing infomercials for bladder control diapers.
@jonri there has been reports that speculate he does have a morals clause in his contract. My thinking is that they included that to cover his actions outside of the workplace that might negatively reflect on the network and by extension their advertisers. His actions in the workplace or while on assignment would also be covered by NY law and company policy. I just don’t think they need a morality clause for the workplace allegations if they have the proof they contend they do.
Don’t think there is any question that the photographs, texts and pestering stemming from just one of the complaints put him in violation of company policy and likely NY state and city laws – then there is federal law as well. Those are what I think they would rely on if they dug their heels in and said no pay out. Of course we don’t know all the other terms of his contact that address compensation when fired for cause which I think he was. He could have negotiated a contract that gives him something under any circumstances.
My instincts tell me he will get a payout no matter what the contract says. Given the history in this industry with large payouts in the same situation it seems likely. I would love to see a tide change in this regard – we are finally seeing some accountability but I think cutting into these extraordinarily generous golden parachutes would speed things up considerably.
@intparent I agree there are nuances between Letterman and Lauer. But the current climate is also heightened in the Lauer instance. I have to run but if you google David Letterman Matt Lauer. , there is an article I just saw after my initial post on this by Variety that just came out.
How about Marv Albert?
does anyone else think Variety really chased this story to make up for the failure to report on the Weinstein?
@HarvestMoon1 I agree with you that it’s probable his actions violated laws. And if the intern now junior producer who complained now complained in 2014 and that complaint resulted in Lauer’s immediate firing, I agree NBC would have a right to fire him. But, if she complained and management decided not to terminate Lauer and instead gave him a new contract in 2016, I’m not so sure NBC can fire him in 2017 for the same actions in 2014, i.e., actions which occurred before his current contract–even if those actions were illegal. I think they could if the actions weren’t known to NBC management. But–whether or not anyone complained–if NBC management KNEW what was going on and did nothing, I think it may have waived its right to terminate him “for cause.”
I think the strongest argument in favor of Lauer getting money is that if Lauer sues NBC he is probably going to argue that NBC DID know and did nothing. And he is going to name the names of people who knew…and not all those people have left NBC. That will be a gift to women who want to sue NBC for hostile environment, etc. It will also keep the story in the news for months.
I have a hard time believing that NBC management had no inking what was going on. When Katie Couric complains Lauer repeatedly pinched her ass, when he told that sex toys story on Meredith Viera’s show-- did anyone at NBC check to see if there was a segment on a sex therapist the day before Laura Bush’s appearance, that others remember the gift, etc.or did his superiors sit there thinking “Nice save, Matt! Quick thinking!”
Personally I think whether Lauer gets money and how much will depend upon how quickly NBC can settle any claims and how effective it can be at shutting up the women and other media. (NBC may give money voluntarily to women whose claims are barred by SOLs in exchange for non-disclosure agreements.) If NBC can’t settle the cases, if Variety, the New York Times, etc. are able to establish that “everyone knew”–which some articles are already saying–and if there are a lot more women, then IMO Lauer’s silence is worth a lot less.
@dadoftwingirls, I expect all media organizations are going over what they’ve held back in or heard rumors of or know are “open secrets” right now.