After a brief hiatus, The Wrap has returned. This week, a powerful journalist was ousted after sexual assault allegations surfaced, while North Korea test fired another powerful missile. In entertainment and sports, a class of diverse Grammy nominees was announced, and college football teams are scrambling to find coaches. Here’s more information on the week’s top stories.
Matt Lauer fired from Today
Today anchor Matt Lauer was fired from NBC on Wednesday following a sexual assault complaint from a colleague.
Shortly after the termination was finalized, NBC News Chairman Andy Lack released a statement explaining the network’s rationale for firing Lauer.
“On Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” Lack said in the statement. “It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company's standards. As a result, we've decided to terminate his employment.
Lack also added that NBC “had reason to believe” this wasn’t an isolated incident, and the network was “deeply saddened by this turn of events.”
Prior to his termination, some media outlets had already been investigating potential sexual assault allegations against Lauer. Hours after his termination was announced by his former colleagues Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb live on Today. Variety released an article detailing multiple sexual assault allegations against Lauer.
Lauer issued an apology and acknowledged that some of the allegations are true Thursday.
"There are no words to express my sorrow and regret for the pain I have caused others by words and actions,” Lauer said in the statement. “To the people I have hurt, I am truly sorry.”
Lauer attended Ohio University in the 1970s, and served as the anchor of Today since 1997. The Post released an article Thursday with more details on the university’s response to Lauer’s termination.
North Korea tests new missile, escalates tensions
North Korea test fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) Tuesday.
The new missile, dubbed Hwasong-15 by North Korean state media, is significantly larger and more advanced than other missiles tested by North Korea, according to CNN.
"This isn't just a big missile for North Korea this is a big missile in general," Michael Duitsman, a research associate at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies, said. "There are not a lot of countries who could build a missile this big and have it work."
While people have expressed concern about the technological capabilities of Hwasong-15, experts aren’t convinced the new missile can carry a large nuclear warhead, despite instance from Pyongyang.
Nikki Haley, the U.S. Ambassador to the United States, said “acts of aggression” from North Korea continue to escalate tensions and push the world closer to war.
"We have never sought war with North Korea, and still today we do not seek it. If war does come, it will be because of continued acts of aggression like we witnessed yesterday," Haley said. "And if war comes, make no mistake, the North Korean regime will be utterly destroyed."
President Donald Trump also commented on the situation in North Korea via Twitter on Wednesday.
Grammy nominations released
The nominees for the 60th Annual Grammy Awards were released Wednesday, and the nominees for major award categories are the most diverse they’ve been in quite a while.
Jay-Z, Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, Lorde and Bruno Mars all received nominations for album of the year, marking the first time in nearly 20 years there isn’t a white male solo artist nominated in the category. The last time the “album of the year” category was completely dominated by minorities was 1999, when four women were nominated.
In addition, Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” also became the first Spanish-language song to be nominated for record of the year and song of the year.
According to Billboard, Recording Academy President and CEO Neil Portnow called the nominations "a wonderful reflection on our organization and how relevant and in touch and savvy our voting members are."
College football coaching chaos ensues after end of regular season
The college football regular season has ended, and many universities have already made drastic changes to their coaching staffs. Here’s an update on the Power 5 “coaching carousel.” Power 5 denotes the 5 conferences at the highest level of collegiate football (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12 and SEC).
Universities that fired their coach and haven’t named a replacement:
Arizona State University
Fired: Todd Graham
Arkansas University
Fired: Bret Bielema
University of Nebraska
Fired: Mike Riley
University of Tennessee
Fired: Butch Jones
Texas A&M
Fired: Kevin Sumlin
Universities who have hired new coaches:
University of Florida
Fired: Jim McElwain
Hired: Dan Mullen
Mississippi State University
Left: Dan Mullen
Hired: Joe Moorhead
Oregon State University
Resigned: Gary Andersen
Hired: Jonathan Smith
UCLA
Fired: Jim Mora
Hired: Chip Kelly
