Savannah Guthrie in total 'PANIC': Today co-workers' brutal true thoughts about her revealed while she's on sick leave... leaving her asking the same humiliating question
Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie is 'in full panic mode' because ratings have shot up since she's been off screen for surgery, the Daily Mail can reveal.
The anxious NBC star had previously intimated she could return this Monday after being forced to take time away for an operation to remove vocal cord nodules.
But she is still missing from the sofa and main anchor desk in Studio 1A at Rockefeller Center in New York City, leaving Sheinelle Jones to continue filling in for her beside co-anchor Craig Melvin.
Now, Guthrie says she is hoping to be back for a brief visit to the set on Friday before returning full-time next Monday.
'Savannah is in full panic mode. While she's been away with the vocal issue, the ratings went UP!' a source revealed to the Daily Mail.
The insider added that Guthrie is 'pushing her doctors to get her back to work as soon as possible. And so that the audience doesn't forget her, she's insisting the show tape a piece on her at home recovering.'
She video-called into the broadcast on Tuesday, telling Melvin, Jones, Jenna Bush Hager, Al Roker and Carson Daly: 'This is my new voice.'
'I think the good news is it worked,' she added. 'It's kind of a slow recovery. You're allowed to talk, and then if you talk too much - which is a real risk for me.'
The Daily Mail can reveal that Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie (pictured) is in 'full panic mode' as ratings have surged while she's been off-screen recovering from surgery
Guthrie (pictured at home) previously announced that she would return to the Today show on Monday, after taking time off for surgery to remove vocal cord nodules
She was still absent from the sofa and main anchor desk in Studio 1A at Rockefeller Center on Monday, leaving Sheinelle Jones (left) to continue filling in beside Craig Melvin (right)
Guthrie, 54, shocked her fans on December 19 by announcing she was taking time off for removal of the nodules and a polyp.
'Some of you have noticed that my voice had been very scratchy and started to crack a bit,' she told viewers while on air. 'Well, I have found out what it is. I have nodules and also a polyp.
'It's not a big, big deal, but I am going to have to have surgery in the new year and be off for a couple of weeks, so this is my last day for a while.'
Shocking new figures reveal Today won 12 percent more viewers for the week covering the end of December and beginning of January while Guthrie was absent compared to the same seven days 12 months prior.
Some 2.86 million people tuned in, according to Nielsen TV ratings, capturing the top spot for Today over ABC's Good Morning America.
'Savannah is trying to laugh it off publicly, but privately, she's completely shaken,' a source close to the show revealed. 'Seeing the ratings tick up without her hit a nerve she didn't know she had.
'She keeps asking, "Is this a fluke?" But no one's giving her a straight answer, which is making it worse.
'Savannah always believed she was the glue holding the show together. The numbers going up while she's gone has seriously rattled that belief. She feels blindsided.
Despite recovering at home from her surgery (pictured), Guthrie was allegedly shocked to see the soaring ratings, fearing NBC could use this as leverage
'She assumed viewers would miss her instantly, so the ratings bump feels personal. She's questioning whether the audience has quietly moved on.'
Responding to the Daily Mail's request for comment, NBC said: ’Season-to-date, TODAY is posting its best ratings in 14 years. Savannah Guthrie has been at the helm of the show for almost that entire time and she is one of the keys to its ratings success.’
The source continued, adding that Guthrie has been constantly checking the latest viewing figures.
'She's refreshing the ratings reports like it's her full-time job right now. It's consuming her,' the source said. 'She's hyper-aware now of every on-air decision, every co-host moment. It's like she's watching the show from the outside for the first time.
'Her biggest fear is that this changes how NBC sees her leverage. That thought alone is keeping her up at night.'
Insiders noticed an instant, more relaxed, 'warmer' and 'more human' change in the show after Guthrie went on her break.
'Without Savannah, the vibe shifted immediately. It stopped feeling like a classroom and started feeling like a group of equals,' another source told the Daily Mail.
'She naturally takes charge, but when she's gone, everyone else finally breathes. It feels more collaborative, more relaxed.
'There's less tension on set now. No one's worried about stepping out of line or getting corrected mid-conversation.
'The show feels warmer. Instead of one authority figure steering everything, it's more like friends sharing the space.'
The insider intimated that new dynamic is having a positive effect on viewing figures.
The Today show co-anchor has been absent from the NBC program since December 20 (Pictured from left: Guthrie and Melvin)
'Savannah is the boss, whether she means to be or not. Without her, no one's in charge and oddly, that's working,' the source said.
'Conversations flow better now. People interrupt, joke, disagree. It feels human instead of managed.'
Viewers are responding to the looseness as it feels less scripted and less like someone's grading everyone in real time.
'There's a noticeable shift in energy,' the source continued. 'The co-hosts feel freer, lighter and more playful without Savannah anchoring the room.
'It used to feel like Savannah and her supporting cast. Now it feels like a true ensemble.
'The irony is Savannah built the structure. But once she stepped away, the show finally felt like a family of equals.'
The Daily Mail has reached out to NBC for comment.
On January 5, Guthrie shared an update to confirm the surgery had gone well.
She posted a photo of herself on Instagram posing with a whiteboard that read, 'All good! Thanks for prayers and love!' In the caption she wrote, 'See you soon!'
Guthrie has co-anchored the Today show since July 2012, initially alongside Matt Lauer, who was fired in 2017 over allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior, and then with Hoda Kotb, who retired last year (Pictured from left: Megyn Kelly, Guthrie, Kotb, Roker)
Seven days later, she joined the Today show from her home and used the whiteboard to reveal what she has been doing to keep busy while recovering.
She was unable to respond to questions vocally, so instead smiled, nodded and clapped alongside her written answers.
The mom of two explained she has been journaling, reading and painting, adding she was also 'growing as a human.'
It was during that appearance that she mouthed she would be back sitting alongside 46-year-old Melvin 'next week.'
Nodules are non-cancerous growths that can form on the vocal cords. They are frequently caused by 'overusing or misusing your vocal cords' leading to a raspy voice or losing it altogether, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Jones had a similar procedure in 2020 and reassured Guthrie by saying, 'The silver lining is you have permission to be still. The house gets quiet, the kids are going to want to help you out.'
As well as the battle to return to Today, Guthrie has a deadline to get better for the NBC and Peacock coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics, which start on February 6 in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.
She is scheduled to cover the opening ceremony alongside longtime sports broadcaster Terry Gannon, with gold medalist Shaun White joining them.
Guthrie (right) reportedly earns $8million a year for her gig and lives with her husband, former Democratic political aide Michael Feldman (left), in their $11million Brooklyn Heights townhouse
Guthrie is slated to host the 2026 Winter Olympics alongside longtime sports broadcaster Terry Gannon (center) and gold medalist Shaun White (right)
'I couldn't be more thrilled to host the opening ceremony alongside the incomparable Terry Gannon and snowboarding legend Shaun White,' she previously said in a statement.
'It's such an honor to celebrate the world's best athletes and introduce the magic and wonder of the winter games and northern Italy to viewers at home.'
Guthrie has co-hosted Today since July 2012 when she joined now disgraced Matt Lauer, who was fired in 2017 over sexual misconduct.
She is reported to earn $8million a year for her role and lives with her husband, former Democratic political aide Michael Feldman, at their $11million townhouse in Brooklyn Heights, New York.
The couple, who married in 2014, are also reported to have a home in upstate New York.
Family life revolves around their 11-year-old daughter Vale and eight-year-old son Charley.
Guthrie had Vale when she was 42 years old, and Charley when she was 44 after rounds of IVF.
'I'll never get over it,' she said of being a mom, per People. 'I got to have babies long past the time that anyone would really be hopeful (and) I had long given up hope.'
'I knew it was winning the lottery ticket to have one child,' Guthrie told Health magazine in 2019. 'So I never dreamed that I would have two. But with Charley, I did do IVF. So I would say Vale was a miracle and Charley was a medical miracle.'
