Hoda Kotb's Fans Raise Concern over Her Cryptic Post amid Absence from 'Today' Show

Hoda Kotb will not brighten your morning today. The trusted and beloved co-host of NBC's "Today Show" has not appeared on a live taping of the program since Sunday, February 17, 2013.

At least her co-host, Savannah Guthrie's hasty exit from the morning show on Tuesday, February 28, was explained within a few minutes. A fan speculated in the comments on Kotb's Instagram that the presenter's posts indicated that "something is definitely wrong" but hoped she was "wrong instead."

"NBC News" correspondent Jacob Soboroff merely left a red heart emoji. Another commenter came to the social media platform for information and asked when she was returning.

Hoda Kotb Posted Motivational Messages Every Day Amid Her Absence

NBC has not explained Hoda Kotb's absence, drawing from "Sunday Today," "World News Tonight," and "Today 3rd Hour," Willie Geist, Tom Llamas, Craig Melvin, Sheinelle Jones, and Jenna Bush Hager, respectively, to host the show.

Kotb was last seen on NBC's airwaves in a pre-recorded Presidents' Day episode on Monday, February 20. Since her absence, the anchor's motivational posts on Insta have been read as cryptic messages to concerned fans who came to the platform for answers.

The first post came on February 23, a quote: "One day you will just see how brave you have been," with imagery from author Charlie Mackesy, followed by an extract from "The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse" about dark skies captioned: "Here's to blue skies xo."

In Kotb's most recent post, "Choose Hope," a fan said that the show was not the same without her and that if the network was letting her go, viewers were "going to drop like flies."

Savannah Guthrie has not posted any updates on her social media after her abrupt exit from the set.

Another commenter acknowledged the anchor's right to privacy but said that her "truest fans" have noticed her absence and the Instagram posts and are worried about her.

Hoda Kotb's Co-Host, Savannah Guthrie, Also Made an Abrupt Exit from a Live Broadcast

On Tuesday, February 28, 2023, Al Roker slowly backed away from his co-hosts as Jones announced just before 9 a.m. that Savannah Guthrie had tested positive for COVID-19.

Viewers were comforted to see at least one of the main hosts at 7 a.m. and were confused and uneasy when Guthrie did not return after a commercial break half an hour later.

This is the third time that Guthrie has tested positive for COVID-19 recently, having suffered from the virus in January 2022 and May 2022.

Savannah Guthrie has not posted any updates on her social media after her abrupt exit from the set, as she sacrificed Instagram for Lent.