Matt Lauer Fired From NBC After Sexual Misconduct Claim

MIDTOWN, NY – NBC's "Today" show host Matt Lauer has become the latest celebrity fired because of allegations of sexual misconduct.

Lauer was fired after an NBC employee complained about "inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace." Co-host Savannah Guthrie made the announcement on the "Today" show Wednesday morning.

"This is a sad day at 'Today' and at NBC News," Guthrie said at the top of the broadcast.

Guthrie read a memo from NBC News Chairman Andy Lack which stated that Lauer was named in a "detailed complaint" Monday night.

"It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company's standards. As a result, we've decided to terminate his employment," Lack said in the memo.

"While it is the first complaint about his behavior in the over twenty years he's been at NBC News, we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident."

Guthrie added that she was "heartbroken" both for Lauer and the woman who made the complaint against him.

Variety's New York bureau chief Ramin Setoodeh tweeted Wednesday morning that he had been working on a story about Lauer's misconduct for two months and that he had been in contact with "multiple victims." Setoodeh also tweeted that NBC was aware of Variety's investigation into Lauer.

Variety published its investigation Wednesday afternoon, detailing complaints of Lauer's sexual harassment from three women who wished to remain anonymous. Lauer reportedly gifted one woman a sex toy with a detailed note explaining how he wanted to use it on her, dropped his pants in front of another colleague and asked female colleagues who they had slept with, Variety reported.

Lauer even had a button underneath his desk so he could discreetly lock his office door from the inside without getting up, Variety reported.

While Lauer's misconduct was well known at "Today" and NBC, network executives often ignored complaints due to Lauer's $25 million contract and his role in earning "Today" top rankings among morning newscasts, Variety reported.

Read the full Variety investigation here.

Huffington Post reporter Yashar Ali also said that he spoke with several of Lauer's accusers, none of whom wanted to go on the record with their accounts out of fear of retribution from Lauer.

"Lauer is among the worst I've heard about. Not in terms of the kind of misconduct but the way in which he manipulated these women into silence. It's evil, frightening stuff," Ali tweeted Wednesday.

Lauer's name is now added to a growing list of media giants felled by allegations of sexual misconduct. Longtime CBS journalist Charlie Rose was fired when eight women brought forth accusations against him in a Washington Post report. Fox News fixtures Roger Ailes was fired in 2016 and Bill O'Reilly was forced out of the network earlier this year.

Lauer, 59, joined "The Today Show" in 1994 as a news anchor. He was named an official co-anchor of the show in 1997.

Watch: 'Today Show' Fans Shocked At Lauer News

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