Katie Couric says ‘Today’ co-anchor Bryant Gumbel gave her ‘endless’ to go on maternity leave
Katie Couric accused Bryant Gumbel of having an “incredibly s*xist stance” on maternity leave when they worked together on the “Today” show.
Couric appeared Sunday on Bill Maher’s “Club Random” show where the host brought up Gamble, whom he described as a “friend” and “guy.”
“He’s a man, you got that right,” Couric, 67, said with a giant smile. “He was prickly, but what a talent. He’s a smooth, eloquent broadcaster. When that countdown happened – five, four, three, two, one – he would hit the mark perfectly.”
Maher, 68 years old, interrupted him, saying: “Smooth as silk.”
Gamble began hosting the “Today” show in 1982 and Couric joined her in 1991, the same year she welcomed her first daughter, Ellie. The duo collaborated together until he left the show in 1997.
“Complicated guy though,” Couric continued on the podcast, referring to some unflattering memories of Gamble. “I think… really talented guy, incredibly smart.”
“He got mad at me because I was doing something on maternity leave,” she revealed. “He would give me endless leave in exchange for taking a month or two off. I was having my first child.”
“I can see that,” Maher replied.
“He was like, ‘Why don’t you just drop it in the field and get back to work right away or something?’ Couric said, noting that Gamble made the statement in a sort of joking tone.
“He was cheating on me but he gave me a lot of things. But it was a symbol of an incredibly s****l orientation.”
The Post has contacted Gumbel’s representatives for comment.
Maher then directed the podcast conversation to Couric’s other “Today” colleague. Matt Lauer, who was fired from NBC in 2017 amid allegations of s****l misconduct in the workplace.
“Well, obviously there was an old boys’ network imitation,” Maher said, repeating Gamble’s allegedly off-putting remark.
“Yes, yes,” Couric agreed. “It was a very different environment, very different. A lot of fraternization, which is a polite way of saying ‘chaos in the inner office.’
“And the women had to put up with more. They just did it,” Maher said. “I mean, you know, not to get all the vague information and Lifetime about it, but people like you and Barbara Walters or like female comedians of a certain age, You really have to take your hat off to them because it was harder.”
“Yes, it was,” Koric nodded.
Couric left NBC in 2006 and served as the first anchor of a national evening newscast on the CBS Evening News until 2011. She then went on to work at ABC and Yahoo News before launching her own media company in 2017.