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NEW YORK — Veteran NBC host and news anchor Craig Melvin has been tapped to replace Hoda Kotb as co-host of the 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. hours of “Today.” Melvin is a familiar face to “Today” show viewers. “He’s been an integral and beloved part of our family,” Libby Leist, senior vice president of “Today,” said in a statement. …

LOADING ERROR LOADING Craig Melvin will replace Hoda Kotb as an anchor on “Today,” NBC’s morning show announced Thursday, keeping the major transition in-house. Melvin was already the news anchor on “Today” and will begin working alongside Savannah Guthrie on Jan. 13. “I’m beyond excited and grateful,” Melvin told viewers Thursday in a clip shared by the show. “You are …

Craig Melvin has assured viewers that his “Today” colleague, Hoda Kotb, is “OK” amid mounting concern over her prolonged absence from the morning program. Melvin explained on air Wednesday morning that Kotb has been away dealing with “a family health matter.” The esteemed “Today” co-anchor hasn’t appeared live on the show since Feb. 17. Prior to Wednesday’s show, the beloved …

“Today” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie abruptly exited the morning program mid-broadcast on Tuesday and tested positive for COVID-19. Sheinelle Jones, who typically co-hosts the third hour of NBC’s “Today” show, informed viewers Tuesday that Guthrie “left early” because she “wasn’t feeling great” before receiving her COVID-19 test results. Also absent from Tuesday’s broadcast was Guthrie’s “Today” co-anchor, Hoda Kotb, who hasn’t …