- Lester Holt to sit in on NBC Nightly News
- Statement: ‘I am presently too much a part of the news’
The Guardian, Martin Pengelly, 7 Feb 2015
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| Brian Williams said: ‘Upon my return, I will continue my career-long effort to be worthy of the trust of those who place their trust in us.’ Photograph: NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images |
NBC news
anchor Brian Williams will step off air while the network continues its
investigation into inaccuracies in his reporting, he announced on Saturday.
Williams
has come under pressure after veterans questioned his account of an incident
involving two US helicopters that came under fire in Iraq in 2003. His
reporting from New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was
subsequently called into question.
In a
statement, Williams said: “In the midst of a career spent covering and
consuming news, it has become painfully apparent to me that I am presently too
much a part of the news, due to my actions.
“As
managing editor of NBC Nightly News, I have decided to take myself off my daily
broadcast for the next several days, and Lester Holt has kindly agreed to sit
in for me to allow us to adequately deal with this issue. Upon my return, I
will continue my career-long effort to be worthy of the trust of those who
place their trust in us.”
On Friday,
NBC News president Deborah Turness said in an internal memo to staff: “This has
been a difficult few days for all of us at NBC News. As you would expect, we
have a team dedicated to gathering the facts to help us make sense of all that
has transpired. We’re working on what the best next steps are.”
Regarding
his version of events in Iraq, Williams apologised on air on Wednesday, saying:
“I made a mistake in recalling the events of 12 years ago. I want to apologise.
I said I was traveling in an aircraft that was hit by RPG fire. I was
instead in a following aircraft.”
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