Latest news with #NBCNightlyNews
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tom Llamas takes over the anchor desk on NBC Nightly News
NEW YORK (WSAV) — Monday, Tom Llamas becomes the new face of 'NBC Nightly News.' Taking over as anchor, Tom brings 25 years of reporting and anchoring experience, along with a passion for journalism, to this prestigious role. This is a special moment for Llamas who says the opportunity is the American Dream. 'My parents left communist Cuba in the late 50s and early 60s. They came here with little to no money. They didn't know the language, and this incredible country gave them a second chance. So my parents taught me to always work hard, but to also love this country, and I do. I think it's the greatest place in the world. It's a testament to the American Dream is still alive. I started working in newsrooms when I was 15 years old. I started working at NBC overnights, making very little money. I've worked every single job in this in this business at NBC and now to be anchoring nightly News, it truly is the dream of a lifetime.' You can see Llamas tonight and every weeknight at 6:30 p.m. following WSAV News 3 at 6 with Tina Tyus-Shaw and Ben Senger. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
New anchor Tom Llamas on his vision for Nightly News and his memories of NBC4
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Before Tom Llamas took over as anchor of NBC Nightly News, he took a visit to NBC4. Llamas made Columbus one of several stops in the weeks after he was announced to replace Lester Holt, who stepped down Friday after nearly 10 years to focus on his role with Dateline. That leaves Llamas the face of a program that viewers have trusted across six decades. Ohio lawmakers push for stricter rules on 'obscene' drag queens, indecent exposure 'It's incredible, and it's an honor,' Llamas said. 'Lester's always been a friend and mentor to me, and he's built such a trust with the viewers. I mean, his brand is America's most trusted news anchor. Can you imagine anything better to have in our business than to be known by that? 'And I hope to do the same.' Llamas spent a day at the NBC4 studios in early May. He spoke with NBC4 Today Anchor Matt Barnes about their shared passion in covering the Olympic Games, and he exchanged industry stories with Jennifer Bullock and Jerod Smalley, anchors of First at 4 and NBC4 at 5. 'It was great to talk with Tom about attending the Olympics,' Barnes said. 'He has an intimate knowledge of what it means to tell the stories of athletes that have given everything they have to reach the pinnacle of their career.' Llamas toured the Mid-Ohio Farm at NBC4, a community garden on the station grounds, on a rainy, muddy afternoon. And he spoke in depth on his vision for his new show, about what's next for his current streaming show, and on what he sees for the future of journalism in America with Colleen Marshall and Kerry Charles, who anchor the NBC4 newscasts that bookend Nightly News. 'I'm thrilled to hear that Tom and his team plan to spotlight the incredible work of local journalists from all parts of the country,' Charles said. Ohio announces 2-week sales tax holiday But when Llamas got to NBC4, he was on a personal mission. He had been there before, and he wanted to know if the newsroom looked the way he'd remembered. He stopped long enough to shake hands with Matthew Herchick, who was heading to the studio to anchor NBC4 News at Midday — 'Hi, I'm Tom,' he said — before strolling through a familiar-looking newsroom for the first time in decades. 'It was the 2004 [presidential] campaign, Battleground Ohio,' Llamas said. 'I drove all over the state. I remember driving from Columbus to Cleveland and seeing all the red barns, and it was so beautiful, like a slice of Americana.' Llamas was on the MSNBC team then, reporting on the presidential aspirations of the Rev. Al Sharpton, who was part of a crowded field for the Democratic nomination. Because Sharpton was so good at challenging the establishment, Llamas said he found himself featured on cable more than those assigned to other candidates, and so his status rose. He lived in an apartment in Columbus' West Scioto neighborhood, using NBC4 as an occasional base of operations, and he got around town enough that memories of certain places persisted. 'It was a restaurant that was so good I was there almost every day, a barbecue restaurant called Hoggy's. Yeah, I really enjoyed it a lot,' he said of the spot on Bethel Road. 'And I thought the Short North, it was like it reminded me of SoHo. It was like a very cool, hip area.' He's lived in Ohio and New York, but Llamas, 45, is a Florida native. Locals paint rainbow fence at German Village bar that had Pride flags stolen Born in Miami to Cuban immigrants who escaped the island's Communist regime as political refugees, he describes his parents as news junkies. His journalism career began at a young age, as an intern for a Telemundo station. 'I started when I was 15, working in local newsrooms. I worked my way up. I've held pretty much every job in the newsroom, from answering telephones to working on graphics to reporting on campaigns, investigative reporting as well,' he said. He earned his journalism degree from Loyola University in New Orleans in 2001. Four years later, after his time with MSNBC, he joined the NBC affiliate in Miami as a reporter, and then in 2009, he went to its affiliate in New York, where he gained experience as an anchor. In 2014, ABC News offered him the chance to be a New York correspondent and a substitute anchor on World News Tonight, and he eventually became the weekend anchor. His coverage of the 2016 presidential campaign led Donald Trump to call Llamas a 'sleaze' to his face after Trump overstated how much a fundraiser had brought in and Llamas questioned him on it. It was a key moment for someone who lives by two career mantras: without fear or favor, and tough but fair. 'I learned how he wants to be covered and how you cover him, and just know that if you're going to ask a tough question, you may get something in return,' Llamas said. 'It may not be an answer, but that just comes with the territory and it's fine. Like I said, you've got to be tough but fair, and if you are, I think he knows that.' Ohio residents are among America's biggest gamblers, according to recent study Llamas has continued covering Trump and has since interviewed most members of the president's immediate family, including joining First Lady Melania Trump on a 2018 trip to Africa. When Llamas returned to NBC News in 2021 as a national correspondent, he launched a daily streaming program called Top Story. Among the major stories he has covered recently are the New Orleans terror attack, wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the death of Pope Francis. Even as the anchor of Nightly News, Llamas is continuing with Top Story. 'I'm doing 90 minutes straight because I want to make sure that we have the viewers that have traditionally turned to Nightly News, but also those viewers who maybe have cut the cord,' he said. Away from work, Llamas and his wife, Jennifer, live with their three children — two daughters and a son — in suburban Westchester County, New York, about 40 minutes north of Rockefeller Center. His days usually start by 6 a.m. — 'I'm fueled on Cuban coffee,' he said — over 12 hours before Nightly News airs. 'There is a lot to admire in Tom, ' Marshall said. 'He has reported on the local and national level, but I especially like his stint as a senior national correspondent and that we share a love of politics.' And just as Llamas understands the value of network news, he said he knows the value of local news like NBC4, too. 'I worked my way up from local stations, and I know how important local stations like our stations in Columbus and across the country are,' he said. 'You guys are our central nervous system.' Llamas can be seen weeknights on NBC Nightly News at 6:30 p.m. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Washington Post
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Tom Llamas is taking over for Lester Holt. Will viewers keep watching?
For the past 10 years, 'NBC Nightly News' viewers have come to expect Lester Holt in the anchor seat at 6:30 every weeknight, providing a tight and polished overview of the day's biggest news stories. The newscast has only had three anchors in the past 40 years: Tom Brokaw, Brian Williams, then Holt. On Monday, Tom Llamas will take over the job, while Holt will remain at the network to expand his role on 'Dateline.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tom Llamas to start as new face of ‘NBC Nightly News' this week
There will soon be a new face of 'NBC Nightly News.' On Monday, June 2, Tom Llamas will take over as anchor and managing editor, replacing Lester Holt, who anchored the program for 10 years. Llamas explains how he plans to take 'Nightly News' on the road to share our stories. 'I live by two tenets, and I think this is true of all of NBC News,' Llamas said. You want to be tough but fair, and you want to report the news without fear or favor, and that's what I'm going to do. I think you have to go to those stories and leave the anchor desk, which I'm going to do a lot, because I believe in sort of shining a light and bearing witness. Because I think when there's a story or an event that causes the whole nation to pause and to look at a city or a town in America, because something has happened there, I want our viewers to know that I'm going to be there as well. Because I think the greats in our business, they could talk on television, but what truly made them great is that they were great listeners. And I think you have to go down there and hear people's stories, because in America, people have a lot to say, and they want to be heard." PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> Lester Holt to anchor last 'NBC Nightly News' tonight before stepping down Llamas is currently a senior national correspondent and anchor of 'Top Story with Tom Llamas' on NBC's streaming platform, which he will continue each weeknight. You can watch Tom Llamas and 'NBC Nightly News' at 6:30 p.m. each weeknight on Channel 11. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
What Lester Holt told Tom Llamas before handing over 'NBC Nightly News'
Tom Llamas first stepped into NBC's Rockefeller Center headquarters in 2000 as a fresh-faced intern. On Monday, he becomes part of television news history as the fifth anchor of "NBC Nightly News" and the first Latino journalist to helm a daily English-language network evening newscast (one of his mentors, Jose Diaz-Balart, handles the Saturday edition of "Nightly"). Llamas, 45, takes over for Lester Holt, who will move full time to NBC's "Dateline" after a 10-year run in the anchor chair. Llamas will remain the anchor of "Top Story," a live, hourlong newscast on the network's free streaming platform NBC News Now. The son of Cuban immigrants, Llamas grew up in Miami, where he continues to have strong ties (pop superstar Gloria Estefan and "Sabado Gigante" host Don Francisco attended a party in Florida to celebrate his promotion). He lives in Westchester County, N.Y., with his wife, Jennifer, three children aged 12, nine and seven, and a dedicated room for his vinyl record collection built from a decade of crate-digging while traveling around the world on assignment. He recently spoke with The Times about his new role. You've known Lester Holt since you were a 21-year-old production assistant at NBC News. What advice did he give you for your new role? He's been married to this job. And so I asked him about that, because my kids have always known me as a network correspondent and a network anchor. But he told me, "Your life is going to change." And he explained to me that everyone's going to want a piece of you and there's going to be a lot of demands, even more than you've ever experienced. And he's been right about that. He said, "You have to make the right decisions when it comes to your career and your family." My wife and my kids have known that sometimes I'll be at a little league game or I'll be at a school play, and I have to run and jump on a plane because there's breaking news. And they understand that their dad does that. But we always have conversations about it. And it's tough. Do your children watch 'NBC Nightly News" and 'Top Story"? Oh yeah. I had my 7-year-old explaining the election to his classmates. He was walking them through when President Biden stepped down and Kamala Harris took over the nomination. Sometimes it's tough. They were watching that night during Hurricane Milton last summer when a transformer exploded over my head, and that is a little scary. There were some text messages and calls to me quickly. Sometimes they watch a little too much and we have to turn it off. But they are very plugged-in; they know the world around them. It's just the same way I was raised. We watched news in English and Spanish as far back as I can remember. Because my parents were always searching for news out of Cuba. What are your early news viewing memories? I can really remember any time Fidel Castro was going to be interviewed. It was always a major moment, right? I remember my parents watching the interview and then deciding if it was a fair interview or not and having an open conversation about that. So I'm hearing about conversations of fairness my entire life. And I see what it means and how viewers react to that. Did that inspire you to go into the profession? I don't know if it was an inspiration as much as it was a testament of how important the news is. It's just that my family relied on the news. They wanted to know what was happening in their home country. They wanted to know what was happening in America. And they listened, and they trust these people. Read more: The network evening news is in flux: Why an American TV institution is under pressure What made the powers that be decide that you should keep doing "Top Story" while doing "Nightly"? It was actually my idea. Right now, in this country, you've got to be everywhere. And I didn't want to lose what we've established for three and a half years. We just got nominated for an Emmy up against amazing legacy shows like "Nightly News," "ABC World News Tonight" and the "CBS Evening News." To be in that circle with a streaming show that is three years old, that's been one of the greatest achievements of my career. Because this was a startup. And a lot of people said we couldn't do this, and we have. President Trump basically declared war on diversity, equity and inclusion policies. [The Federal Communications Commission has called for an investigation into NBC's parent firm Comcast for what it describes as "DEI discrimination."] Has that muted the achievement of being the first Latino to anchor an English-speaking nightly newscast? I don't think I got this job because I'm Hispanic; I think I got this job because I'm the best person for the job. And I know that's what NBC believes, too. My life story is something I'm very proud of. [My parents] essentially came to this country with nothing. They had no money, they barely spoke the language, and this incredible country gave them a second chance. It gave them a new home. And they taught me hard work, but they also taught me to love this country. And I do, I think this is the greatest place in the world, hands down. To become the anchor of "Nightly News" tells me that the American dream is still very alive. You're from the streaming music generation, but you have a vinyl record collection. How did that happen? Ten or 12 years ago, I went to my friend's house in Los Angeles and he has a record player. I think he played "Sticky Fingers" from the Rolling Stones. We just chilled and we listened to the album. And I thought, "What a great experience." Then I realized the other fun part about records is just finding them and collecting them, and trying to get original pressings. I have Wilson Pickett records that were made in Spain. I have Beatles records where the liner notes and the album covers are in different languages. I have a room where I have them — it feels like you're walking into a jukebox. It's where I read the paper sometimes. It's where I prepare for big election nights. I'll be in there for hours. It's how I relax. What's on your turntable at the moment? I'm in a bit of a hard-bop phase, so I'm listening to a lot of Art Blakey, a lot of Cannonball Adderley. I've been trying to find great live albums. I picked up this great five-record set from Bruce Springsteen, the run he had in the late '70s through the '80s. And a great album, which I got turned on to, is Elvis Presley's "From Elvis in Memphis." He recorded that in 1969, when Jimi Hendrix was taking off and Woodstock was happening. And it's just a very country Americana album with beautiful songs. It's got the Memphis Boys backing him. You have good taste in music. I appreciate it. Sign up for our Wide Shot newsletter to get the latest entertainment business news, analysis and insights. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
