MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
We're going to talk more about this with Brian Stelter. He is the chief media analyst at CNN, and he's known Savannah Guthrie for more than a decade. Brian, good morning. Thanks for joining us.
BRIAN STELTER: Good morning. Thanks.
MARTIN: So you have two hats on this conversation - media analyst, and you're also somebody who knows Savannah, so let's just start there. You mentioned on CNN yesterday that one of the reasons you and Savannah bonded was that both of your fathers died when you were young. So tell me about Savannah and her mom's relationship.
STELTER: Yeah. Savannah was born in Australia because her father, Charles, was working as a mining engineer there. And when they moved to Tucson and settled in Tucson when she was young, she was like, you know, any other child growing up in Arizona. But then, when her father died, she was entering senior year of high school. And that, of course, was a traumatic experience that brought her even closer to her mom. She talked about thinking about not wanting to move away for college because she didn't want to leave her mom. And, of course, that was a really difficult and important decision for Savannah.
So when she decided to go into broadcast journalism, she started her career. She did have to move away from home. That was a big moment for her. And she's talked a lot, including on the "Today Show," about that relationship with her mom over the decades, how important it was to keep her mom as close as possible, even when she was physically away. So it is so striking how "Today Show" viewers feel like they know Nancy Guthrie. They've seen her many times over the years, including just a few months ago in a segment where Savannah returned to her hometown. She described herself as a daughter of the desert, and now she's back in Tucson for the worst imaginable reason.
MARTIN: Is that - you know, morning TV is different in some ways from, you know, other types of the news. Is it typical for somebody to sort of feature a family member in that way? I know a lot of people enjoy it, but I'm just wondering, is that typical, or is that something unique to this?
STELTER: I would say some hosts do, and some hosts don't. Savannah was doing it because it felt natural to her and because it helped people see who she was beyond the television anchoring part of the job. You know, I wrote a book about Morning TV a long time ago. I always heard people talk about the word family, and sometimes it comes across as corny. TV executives try to portray these shows and these hosts as family members. But in the case of Savannah, we are seeing NBC really rally around her in a really impressive way. NBC is mobilizing its resources, trying to help her family, knowing this is the - one of the worst moments of her life.
MARTIN: Now, this story is getting - I'm putting your media analyst hat on now.
STELTER: Yeah.
MARTIN: This story is getting a lot of media attention and not just...
STELTER: Yeah.
MARTIN: ...On NBC. Why do you think that is? Is it because Savannah Guthrie is such a big star? Because these kinds of events are relatively rare in the U.S.? I mean, you hear about this in other countries, like government officials having family members, you know, abducted usually for ransom. But you can see where some people might see this as special treatment. What do you think?
STELTER: I did appreciate that NBC's reporting yesterday morning acknowledged right at the outset people do go missing in the U.S. every day. But this particular story has people's stomachs in knots. I think people are thinking about the importance of family, thinking about the fragility of life. And yes, of course, it's about the connection to a celebrity, but certain crimes break through in the public consciousness for all sorts of reasons, right? Sometimes the type of crime, sometimes the victim, sometimes the suspect. In this case, it's about the connection to one of the most beloved television broadcasters in the country to know Savannah is to love her, and to know how much she loves her mom. And she was about to be on a very high-profile job on top of her usual role.
You know, she was on TV every morning, but she was about to co-host the opening ceremonies of the Olympics on NBC just this Friday. In fact, she was supposed to fly to Italy yesterday to get prepared. Now, of course, all that's on hold, and now she's going through something much more important, much more personal in Tucson. It is so striking how the public is being asked to help, and not just locally, even nationally. In fact, the sheriff thanked the national media for the news coverage, believing that can make a difference.
MARTIN: Have you been able to reach Savannah since her mom went missing?
STELTER: I haven't talked to her directly. I have talked to family members and NBC producers, and, you know, this is obviously agonizing for everybody involved, because it is a mystery. As your reporter in Arizona said, right now, this is a mystery. The sheriff seems to need more information, including, you know, information from Ring cameras and things like that. But we're talking about a relatively secluded neighborhood, a crime that apparently happened in the middle of the night, in the, you know, depths of darkness. A very scary situation for the family.
MARTIN: That's Brian Stelter. He's CNN's chief media analyst. Brian, thank you so much.
STELTER: Thanks.
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