The news has been pushed and rumored for weeks. But Politico Playbook’s lead item this morning is the news that NBC Political Director Chuck Todd will soon take over David Gregory‘s position as host of “Meet the Press.” The announcement stresses that “nothing is definite or decided.”
However, the news is expected within weeks.
NYP‘s Page Six first hinted at Gregory being ousted from his coveted post in late July, followed by the news in early August that he recently met with CNN’s Jeff Zucker. In April, WaPo reported that NBC had sought out a psychology consultant to find out what the hell Gregory couldn’t produce better ratings.
Up until this point, NBC flacks and employees have reduced the news to rumors and “idle gossip.”
In short: the writing is on the wall. This is going to be quite a blow for Gregory, the confident journalist who took over for the late and beloved Tim Russert in 2008.