Jenna Bush Hager didn’t see Hoda Kotb’s retirement coming.
More than two months after the Today show host announced she would be stepping back from her role, her fourth hour cohost detailed how she took the news.
“I mean, to be totally honest, I was shocked,” Jenna admitted to guest Matt Rogers during the Dec. 5 episode of her Open Book with Jenna podcast. “Shocked.”
Hoda, 60, announced her departure on air Sept. 26, citing that she wanted to spend more time with her daughters Haley, 7, and Hope, 5. And while Jenna, 43, has been working alongside Hoda on their segment for five years, she admitted she didn’t have a lot of time to process the news before it became public.
“I found out, like, the week before,” she continued. “She told me as soon as she’d made the decision, but it was—you know, Hoda does things. And this is why I admire her so much, is that she really listens to herself, and therefore she makes decisions which can feel surprising to others and just right for her.”
