• Amy Adams Interview on 'Today' Canceled When She Refused to Discuss Sony Hack

    Amy Adams held her ground with NBC executives yesterday and it cost her a promotional interview on "Today." The show wanted to get her opinion on one of the hottest topics out there now — the hacking of Sony — and apparently Adams refused to comment publicly. Her name has been mentioned in some of the leaked emails that prove she and Jennifer Lawrence were paid considerably less than their male costars in "American Hustle." It was a topic Adams refused to touch, so "Today" decided to cancel her interview on the spot in spite of her being there to actually promote her new film "Big Eyes."What actually transpired in the green room depends on who you ask. Adams's team insists she carried herself with grace while NBC insiders are saying things got heated and her attitude did not win her any fans. According to "Us Weekly," it was just business as usual for the morning show.
  • Did 'Today's' Matt Lauer Recently Walk Out on His Wife and Kids?

    No other news reader seems to be dogged with rumors quite like "Today's" Matt Lauer. His 16-year marriage to Annette Roque has been plagued with rumors of Lauer's continued skirt-chasing and her instability. As it stands now, the couple are parents to three children and are rarely seen out in public together. In fact, there is speculation that Lauer and his wife split for a while this past summer after new allegations of an affair were made.According to a report by Radar Online, Roque and her children spent the summer in the Hamptons, and even though NBC gave Lauer access to a helicopter to get back into the city faster for work, he instead chose to reside in the couple's New York City apartment. At that same point in time, Lauer was allegedly spotted out and about with a woman who was not Roque. Supposedly, the couple took a short break and then Lauer begged to come home for the sake of their kids.Of course, sources close to the morning show anchor claim that his reasons for living alone in the city were completely work-related.
  • Debbie Allen Is Struggling to Believe the Allegations that Have Been Made Against Her Good Friend Bill Cosby

    As more allegations of sexual misconduct are leveled against Bill Cosby on almost a daily basis, his supporters seem to be scattering. That makes the people who are still firmly planted in his corner a bit more noteworthy. Debbie Allen has long been affiliated with the actor, and while promoting her new BET special "The Hot Chocolate Nutcracker," she weighed in on the whole scandal, admitting that she finds the allegations "hard to believe" because of the man she has believed Cosby to be.Allen recently discussed her thoughts with "Today's" Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee, explaining:"I don't think we can have this conversation honestly in two minutes. It begs to ask a bigger question. Where's the moral spine in America and in the world today? Because how are we raising our daughters, our sons? Where are we looking for the guidance of how we're supposed to live? Cosby gave us one of the greatest shows in history and redefined the perception of black people all over the world."At the same time, I'm a part of One Billion Rising. This is a movement for women to stand up against violence and denigration of women. This is a tough situation, and it's just hard to believe. I don't know. I think that so much time has passed before they all have kind of have come together ... there's a big question that my mother asks me every day, 'Why now? Why are these people trying to destroy his legacy?'"
  • Ray Rice Insists He and Janay Rice Have Only Ever Had 'One Bad Night, It Just Happened to Be on Video'

    Did you catch Ray Rice's interview with Matt Lauer yesterday on "Today"? The sit-down interview had actually been booked with Janay Rice, and it gave her an opportunity to finally speak about that horrific night in Atlantic City last February when Ray knocked her out cold in an elevator. The couple had been dealing with their issues semi-privately until the surveillance video went viral last September, and the fallout has been huge. Janay answered all sorts of questions about their relationship and insisted that her now-husband has never laid a finger on her other than this one time. Supposedly, Ray came home near the end of her interview and decided to appear on camera.Perhaps NBC thought it would feel more impromptu and less strategically planned if Lauer talked to the couple while standing in their kitchen. Once they all settled in around the island, Rice insisted that they have only had this one bad night together, and unfortunately there is video to document it. He also claims that working is not his biggest concern right now.Ray told Lauer:"The big deal is for me to always protect her, and that's why I said I take full responsibility. She can do no wrong. This is something, you know, as a man you have to own and, we're horribly sorry, and I'm horribly sorry for everything that I have to put my family through. I still got to live every day, go take my daughter to school. She's going to grow up and the way the Internet works now she's going to Google her father's name and the first thing that's going to come up is, you know what's going to come up."
  • Dr. Nancy Snyderman Returns to 'Today' After Ebola Quarantine Violation Resulted in Serious Backlash

    Dr. Nancy Snyderman will finally return to "The Today Show" this morning after a two-month absence. The medical expert returned from Liberia in early October and announced that she and her crew would be voluntarily quarantining themselves because one NBC freelancer with them had contracted the Ebola virus. About a week into that self-imposed quarantine, Snyderman was spotted out grabbing take-out in New Jersey. She issued an apology that sounded more like blame-shifting and the backlash was so bad that NBC has kept her off the air and in limbo for the last six weeks.For a while the network was reportedly debating whether or not to fire their chief medical correspondent. Before this major misstep, Snyderman was considered to be a credible and valued member of NBC's news team. The jury is still out on whether or not the viewers will continue to trust her judgment. Snyderman's first segment back will have nothing to do with Ebola and she is expected to once again apologize for her careless actions.
  • Ray Rice Hit the Clubs in NYC to Celebrate Having His NFL Suspension Lifted

    Last Friday, Nov. 28, Ray Rice's suspension from the NFL was lifted on an appeal, and apparently he was in the mood to celebrate. Rice was spotted hitting up Bounce Sporting Club in New York City late Saturday night. The fallen NFL star stayed chatting and chilling with fans until the wee hours of Sunday morning. According to a TMZ report, security attempted to keep the fans from bothering Rice, but he was loving the attention. Rumor has it his wife Janay Rice was also with him, but that has yet to be confirmed.We can tell you with certainty that Janay's interview with "Today's" Matt Lauer these past two days has been seen in part by nearly everyone. This morning's installment included Ray taking part in the interview while standing at a kitchen counter with Janay and her parents. He, of course, apologized for knocking his wife out last February in Atlantic City after a night of hard partying. He believes that therapy has really helped him and claims he is ready to sacrifice whatever is necessary to take care of his wife.
  • Janay Rice's Exclusive 'Today' Interview Insinuates that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell Repeatedly Lied

    After six months of silence, Janay Palmer Rice finally had a chance to sit down and address everything that has happened since Ray Rice knocked her out cold in an Atlantic City elevator earlier this year. Instead of splitting from Rice, she instead married him and has decided to support him, even once that surveillance tape went viral in September. Janay agreed to an interview with "Today's" Matt Lauer, in the hopes that people might understand how this one horrific instance of domestic violence does not define what her marriage is really like.Janay repeatedly called Rice's actions "a mistake" and reminded viewers at home that no one is perfect. She also insisted that, aside from this one incident, Rice has never been the least bit violent with her at all. She expressed serious upset at how the Baltimore Ravens organization treated them once it released Rice from his contract and believes that eventually he will be allowed to prove himself again in the NFL.Lauer also asked about what Rice told NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell when the incident first happened. Goodell has claimed that he never saw the tape until it went viral last September and that he had no idea how violent the altercation actually was. Janay balked at the notion that Rice might have minimized the attack, telling Lauer:"No. Not in any way. And, you know, I feel like if they wanted to know more details then they would have asked. But there were no further questions. It — it's been consistent with everything that he's been saying since February. I can't say he's telling the truth. You know? I know for a fact that he told — that Ray told the honest truth that he's been telling from February. So — I think they did what they had to do for themselves."
  • Ray Rice's Suspension from NFL Lifted as 'Today' Prepares to Air Interview with Janay Palmer Rice Next Week

    Ray Rice finally won the war to preserve his career on Friday, and his suspension from the NFL has been lifted, effective immediately. That means that if Rice can find a team willing to sign his this late in the season he may actually get some play time in before the next Super Bowl. Back in early September an elevator surveillance video was released that showed Rice knocking his now-wife, Janay Palmer, out cold with one punch, then dragging her off the elevator. He was handed an indefinite suspension after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell seemed to barely offer up a slap on the wrist last spring.
  • NBC's Tom Brokaw Makes Other Networks Jealous By Scoring a Lengthy Interview with Angelina Jolie

    Angelina Jolie has been working hard to promote her new film "Unbroken," which is the story of Louis Zamperini's life from Olympic long-distance runner to World War II prisoner of war. She has worked closely with NBC and let it into her tight circle as it works on a documentary about Zamperini and how she has brought his story to the big screen.Tom Brokaw has spent quite a bit of time with Jolie in recent months, and this morning, Nov. 25, on "Today" we caught a glimpse of his exclusive sit-down interview with her.Aside from this huge project, Jolie has had a lot of other things going on in her life, including her recent marriage to Brad Pitt. Brokaw took the time to ask Jolie about their new status as husband and wife after already spending a decade together.
  • Janay Palmer Does Her Best to Downplay Being Knocked Out by Ray Rice in New Interview with Matt Lauer

    Janay Palmer has spent the last few months basically hiding out, not allowing the general public to have much more than a slight glimpse into her personal life, and who can blame her? After that now-infamous elevator surveillance video went public, showing her now-husband Ray Rice knocking her out with one punch, it was a real turning point in her life. Palmer chose quite quickly to stand by her husband and support him, even going so far as to lambaste the NFL for punishing Rice for his violent actions. It was pretty clear Palmer was taking the "stand by your man" approach to the whole scandal and, in doing so, she kept her silence for the most part. At least until NBC's "Today" managed to grab the first official interview with her.Make no mistake, it is actually Rice that NBC wants to hear from, and while he never signed on the dotted line with the network, he was there when Matt Lauer sat down with Palmer in the couple's Maryland home late last week. How much he actually said is still unknown, but Lauer appeared happy with the outcome of the chat.
  • NBC's 'Today' Hoping to Land Exclusive First Joint American Interview with Kate Middleton and Prince William Later This Year

    NBC is sure working hard to get in good with the royal family. First the network scored an exclusive interview last summer with Pippa Middleton, and that went so well that Kate Middleton's sister is now said to be in contention for a spot with "The Today Show" as a lifestyles correspondent. Now we are hearing that "Today" is also working hard to try and secure the first joint American interview with Middleton and her husband, Prince William.We told you the other day that the young couple is planning to travel to the States in a few weeks and will be spending time in New York City. There is also a pretty good chance that little Prince George will be traveling with them, and it is an opportunity that NBC is dying to take full advantage of. ABC is also supposedly vying for a similar interview, but because of Pippa's connection with "Today," it seems more likely that they would agree to grant that morning show their first interview.
  • NBC Honchos Divided Over Whether or Not to Fire Dr. Nancy Snyderman for Breaking Ebola Quarantine

    Up until recently, Dr. Nancy Snyderman was heralded as one of the top medical staffers employed by NBC. The network sent her to cover the Ebola virus in West Africa because viewers had come to trust her judgment, so it made sense for her to be one of the leaders when it came to educating NBC's audience.When Snyderman and her team returned, she claimed they were going to voluntarily quarantine themselves for 21 days just to be extra careful, said the "Hopewell Valley News." When Snyderman was spotted out grabbing take-out less than a week later in New Jersey, said the "Princeton Packet," the fallout was pretty explosive, and now weeks later the network's honchos are divided over whether or not to fire her for breaking her Ebola quarantine.At first NBC announced that Snyderman and her team would be given a few extra weeks off and return in November. Execs were hoping that a bit of time off would put distance between Snyderman and the scandal that had surrounded her.