You can tell it’s a sweeps week when all sorts of stunt stories start popping up in TV news, and no stunt is more frivolous and silly than “Where in the World is Matt Lauer?” on NBC’s morning news show “Today.”
The schedule of the CotB staff matches that of the “Today” show, so every morning, the bleary-eyed CotBers are subjected to the inane “happy talk” between Lauer, Al Roker and Ann Curry.
Through the years, the morning show has become a ratings powerhouse, probably rightly so, but the popularity of the annual “Where in the World is Matt Laurer?” completely bewilders and angers this CotB staffer.
Today we watched Matt zip off to Namibia
It bewilders me because, who really cares where Matt goes? The whole segment is simply a travel video.
There’s a whole TV network dedicated to travel, yet the NBC wants us to care where just one guy is today.
I know you are sensing some jealousy here. Why? Well my job consists of sitting my butt in a chair for eight hours a day and looking at a computer screen. Matt Lauer? He gets to interview famous people and fly all over the world on the company dime. Whose job is more fun in your opinion?
What’s amusing is that Lauer himself seems more than aware of the silliness of the segment. After the “Where in the World” jingle ended at the beginning of one segment a few years ago, he commented that viewers would likely be so tired of the event by weeks’ end that they’d be ready to “open up a vein.”
He’s made similar comments in year’s past too.
For his own self-awareness, we have to give Matt a gold star, but until he convinces his bosses at NBC to end the whole segment, we’ll still be jealous, disgusted and resentful of his yearly jaunts.
As if you need another reason to be annoyed, each day of his five-day expedition, Matt offers an annoying clue as to where the “Where in the World” tour will take him next.
My perpetual guess? Inside the churning cauldron of Kilauea.
Let’s see if he get back to New York after that!
Where would I prefer Matt Lauer go? Well, Matt Lauer can go to (expletive) for all I care.
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