Lester Holt: Tonight’s ‘Nightly News’ Debut Like “First Day Of School”

“Last night I found myself laying clothes out like it was the first day of school,” Lester Holt said this morning on NBC’s Today show. “It was a strong broadcast when I started filling in for it, and I think we’ll continue to build off our success. It’s a great group of people who have kept their heads down during tough times and continue to crank out a good broadcast, so I’m just happy to be the new steward of it.”

Tonight will mark his debut as permanent anchor of the newscast, though he’s been filling in as anchor since February when NBC News suspended Brian Williams for having misrepresented his experience on a helicopter flight during the Iraq War. Late last week, NBC announced Williams was moving to MSNBC and Holt would take over Nightly.

Holt has hung on to most of Williams’ audience during his stewardship of the evening newscast, minus any promotion. Now, as NBC News amps up its plugging of Holt, this morning infotainment show’s segment included a look back at highlights from his dozen years with the division.

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