The “Today” show producer whose affair with Matt Lauer led to him being fired after she claimed he engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior is planning a tell-all book, according to a new report.
The woman, who worked as Meredith Vieira’s assistant before being promoted to a producer, started an affair with Lauer, one of the top hosts at NBC, who made $25 million a year before being fired in November 2017, during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia.
She told NBC executives about the affair, alleging that Lauer used his position improperly in the relationship. The woman has not been publicly named.
But sources told the New York Post that the woman, who is believed to no longer work at the network, is shopping a memoir, which would include information about Lauer and the affair.
When Lauer was fired, the woman’s attorney, Ari Wilkenfeld, said during an appearance on “Today” that she was “terrified” that people would discover her identity.
“There’s a hunt underway to figure out who she is,” he said. “I think that’s going to have a chilling effect on other women who might want to come forward and tell their stories, who might be worried that they will be defined by it, because their names will come out afterward.”
It wasn’t clear whether the book would reveal her name.
Little information about the book was detailed, but the Post said the woman is “speaking to a variety of publishing houses.”
A source also said that the relationship was “not a flight; it was an affair.”
“She went and complained and Matt was fired. He admitted it when Andy [Lack, NBC chairman] confronted him,” the source said.
Lack issued a statement after receiving the complaint and firing Lauer.
“Dear colleagues, on Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” Lack’s statement read. “It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards. As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment.”
Following his firing, Lauer expressed regret for causing pain.
“To the people I have hurt, I am truly sorry. As I am writing this, I realize the depth of the damage and disappointment I have left behind at home and at NBC. Some of what is being said about me is untrue or mischaracterized, but there is enough truth in these stories to make me feel embarrassed and ashamed. I regret that my shame is not shared by the people I cherish dearly,” he said.
Conflicting Reports on Lauer
Some reports earlier this year indicated that Lauer was planning a return to television, but others presented other information.
Sources close to the former “Today” host told In Touch Weekly that he was not planning a return and no networks wanted him back.
“Matt’s friends are saying he has no plans to make a TV comeback, but the real truth is that no one really wants him back, not yet anyway,” one source said. “Matt shouldn’t be picky, but the few offers he got were embarrassing. … He’s gotten some random web show offers, but that’s not something he’s going to do. If he accepted a web series, he’d get even more negative press.”
“The last thing he wants is some headline declaring how the mighty have fallen,” the source added.
Lauer has stayed out of the spotlight since being fired but did release a statement in April 2018 in which he said that there were “many false stories from anonymous or biased sources that have been reported about me over these past several months.”
“I remained silent in an attempt to protect my family from further embarrassment and to restore a small degree of the privacy they have lost. But defending my family now requires me to speak up,” his statement added. “I fully acknowledge that I acted inappropriately as a husband, father, and principal at NBC. However, I want to make it perfectly clear that any allegations or reports of coercive, aggressive, or abusive actions on my part, at any time, are absolutely false.”
