Tom Llamas on taking over 'NBC Nightly News' from 'Iron Pants' Lester Holt
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'NBC Nightly News' anchor Tom Llamas explains why he left ABC News
Tom Llamas, the new anchor of "NBC Nightly News," explains to USA TODAY's Ralphie Aversa how he became interested in the news.
NEW YORK - Tom Llamas, the veteran journalist who takes the helm of NBC Nightly News from Lester Holt on June 2, is breaking down a typical weekday and how it'll change with his new gig. Llamas lives just north of Manhattan in Westchester County, New York, with his wife Jennifer and their three children, ages 12, 9 and 7.
"I get up at 6:30 in the morning because I want to be there for breakfast (with my kids)," Llamas, 45, tells USA TODAY. "But I've got to have my energy levels peaking at 6:30 (p.m.) now. I'm going to figure it out; a lot of Cuban coffee."
Llamas admits that he already drank a lot of coffee with his previous schedule, which includes traveling the globe to cover breaking news for NBC in addition to anchoring "Top Story with Tom Llamas," an evening news program that streams on NBC News Now. (The show recently earned an Emmy nomination.) Llamas also served as the main substitute anchor for Holt on "Nightly News." In addition to his new duties as the anchor and managing editor of "Nightly News," Llamas will continue to host "Top Story."
"People are working feverishly at 30 Rock because the moment 'Nightly News' ends in the same studio, they're going to hit a button and the entire studio's going to change," Llamas reveals, as Studio 1A will transform from the "Nightly News" set to "Top Story." In all, he'll be anchoring 90 minutes of live television, five nights a week. "The graphics are all going to change, and 'Top Story's' going to start within seconds."
Who is new 'NBC Nightly News' anchor Tom Llamas?
Llamas was born in Miami to Cuban refugee parents and traces his interest in news to his childhood.
"At the dinner table, we were always talking politics, international affairs, even when we were little," he recalls. "Our parents wanted us to understand what had happened in Cuba, so I was always interested in current events."
His career started at 15 when he landed an internship with Telemundo, now owned by NBCUniversal. Llamas graduated from Loyola University in New Orleans and later completed a program at the University of Miami's Institute for Cuban and Cuban American Studies. Since 2000, he has spent the majority of his time with NBC News and its local affiliates, save for a seven-year stretch from 2014 to 2021 at ABC News. During Llamas' time at ABC, he worked as chief national affairs correspondent and as the weekend anchor on "World News Tonight," while also handling substitute anchor duties for David Muir on weekdays.
When the world shut down following the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Llamas' priorities shifted; he was looking to travel less. A homecoming to NBC News was "always in the back of my mind," he says. NBC News hired him as a senior national correspondent and the "Top Story" anchor.
"The team welcomed me with open arms," he says. "People like Savannah (Guthrie) and Hoda (Kotb) were the first people I told and they were so nice. And I've known Lester since I was 21."
Holt, 66, has anchored "Nightly News" since 2015, when he replaced Brian Williams, who was suspended for falsely claiming that he had been in a helicopter hit by enemy fire during the Iraq War. A subsequent investigation found that he had made other inaccurate statements about his experiences covering events, and he lost the job.
Llamas is the fourth person in the last 40 years to anchor "Nightly News," joining Holt, Williams and Tom Brokaw, who anchored from 1983 to 2004.
Both Llamas and his wife worked for Holt as production assistants straight out of college.
Tom Llamas continues a trend in changing faces at NBC, network news
Holt will stay with NBC as anchor of "Dateline" newsmagazine. But his departure from the anchor chair at "Nightly News" marks the second major change to NBC News' talent lineup this year. Kotb left her post as co-anchor of "Today" in January. All of this comes as Comcast, NBCUniversal's parent company, prepares to spin off MSNBC, CNBC, E! and Syfy into a new company called Versant.
Meanwhile, Norah O'Donnell departed the "CBS Evening News" in January, and was unsuccessfully replaced by co-anchors Maurice DuBois and John Dickerson. Muir, who took over "World News Tonight" in 2014, is the longest tenured of the network evening news anchors.
"There's still close to 20 million Americans that watch the evening news every single night," Llamas remarks of the current landscape. "It's a lot more competitive than people know. We compete for everything in network news, like whether it be bookings on guests, on politicians, live-shot locations, who has the best story, who has the most compelling elements, the video. All of our journalists, besides getting the story right, they're also making sure that they've beaten the competition."
Llamas' goal with "Nightly News" is to "modernize the storytelling little by little," employing more user-generated content. He'll judge the program's success on gaining viewers' trust, although he wants "Nightly News" to be No. 1 in the ratings; ABC has led for nearly a decade, with CBS a distant third. However, his conversations with Holt on the anchor role have focused less on ratings and more on their personal lives.
"(Holt) did this job while being a father and a husband," Llamas says. "He had two sons and he came up in local news, cable and the network. He was always a hard worker. I mean, his nickname is 'Iron Pants.' So I've asked him about that and the tough calls he had to make."
The work-life balance, while now on a more national level, isn't new to Llamas or his family. He says his kids are excited for him and he credits his wife with being the "rock" of their family.
How will Tom Llamas cover the Trump administration?
Llamas is aware that President Trump is a news consumer. And while the current president has probably seen some of Llamas' work on NBC, the anchor is also aware of his new platform.
"You've got to be tough but fair," Llamas says. "If you're tough on the Republicans, you've got to be tough on the Democrats, and you've got to be fair about it. I think NBC has always done that. And then you've got to report the news without fear or favor.
"I work for NBC News, but I really work for the viewers. And so when I do have the opportunity to interview the president" – he has not thus far – "I know I'm not asking questions for me or for NBC, I'm asking questions for the people at home. (The challenge) comes with the territory. I've had conversations with Lester about this as well. But I know what I've signed up for, and I'm looking forward to it."
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