Savannah Guthrie is set to return to her regular hosting job at Today — marking her first appearance on the show since the disappearance of her mother, Nancy Guthrie.
Savannah last appeared on the daytime show on January 30, one day before her mother’s disappearance. Now, 50 days since the suspected abduction of the 84-year-old, the broadcaster is set to return on April 6. This week, Today aired an interview with Savannah about her experience following her mother’s disappearance.
Nancy Guthrie remains missing after a suspected abduction
Speaking in the interview to fellow Today host Hoda Kotb, Savannah discussed her motivations for returning to work amid her search for her mother.
The TV presenter expressed mixed feelings about her return to daytime. “It’s hard to imagine doing it because it’s such a place of joy and lightness, and I can’t come back and try to be something that I’m not,” Savannah said.
However, she believes the change will help her. “I can’t not come back, because it’s my family,” she explained. “I think it’s part of my purpose right now.”
The positivity of her day job, she believes, will send a message to her mother’s abductors. She continued, “I want to smile. And when I do, it will be real. And my joy will be my protest. My joy will be my answer, and being there is joyful. And when it’s not, I will say so.”
Nonetheless, Savannah was measured about her capacity to return to work full-time. She expressed anxieties about not fulfilling the emotional demands of hosting. “I don’t know if I can do it. I don’t know if I’ll belong anymore, and I would like to try.”
Ultimately, however, she remained optimistic about how her experiences shaped her. “I’m not going to be the same,” she said candidly. “But maybe it’s like that old poem, ‘More beautiful in the broken places.'”
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