Natalie Morales (journalist)

Natalie Morales-Rhodes[1] (born Natalie Leticia Morales June 6, 1972) is an American journalist working for NBC News. She is the Today Show West Coast anchor and appears on other programs including Dateline NBC and NBC Nightly News.

Natalie Morales
Morales in May 2011
Born
Natalie Leticia Morales

(1972-06-06) June 6, 1972
Taipei, Taiwan
Alma materRutgers University
OccupationJournalist
Years active1994–present
Notable credit(s)
Today co-anchor and national correspondent (2006–2011)
Today news anchor and third hour co-anchor (2011–2016)
Today West Coast anchor (2016–present)
Access host (2016–2019)
Spouse(s)
Joseph Rhodes
(
m. 1998)
Children2
WebsiteToday: Natalie Morales

In August 2016, after the Rio Summer Olympics, Morales moved to Los Angeles, where she became both the Today show's West Coast anchor, Billy Bush's replacement as host of Access Hollywood and Access Hollywood Live, while continuing as a correspondent for Dateline.[2]

Early life

Morales was born in Taiwan, to a Brazilian mother, Penelope, and a Puerto Rican father, Lieutenant Colonel Mario Morales, Jr.[3] She speaks Spanish and Portuguese and spent the first eighteen years of her life living in America and overseas in Panama, Brazil, and Spain as a "U.S. Air Force brat". She graduated in 1990 from Caesar Rodney High School located in Camden, Delaware.[4][5]

Morales holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers University with dual majors in Journalism & Media Studies and Latin American studies.[6] She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude.[7]

Career

Following college, Morales worked at Chase Bank before pursuing her journalism career.[8] She began her on-air career at News 12 – The Bronx as the first morning anchor under News 12 - The Bronx's first news director Roberto Soto, and original studio directors Tom D’Elia, Brian Webb, Darryl Stith, and David Rein. She also served as a camera operator, editor, and producer for that network.

Morales went on to serve as a weekend anchor/reporter and morning co-anchor at WVIT-TV in Hartford, Connecticut, where she reported on the Columbine shootings, Hurricane Floyd, the 2000 Presidential election and the September 11, 2001 attacks. She also co-hosted and reported for the Emmy-nominated documentary, Save Our Sound, a joint production with WNBC on preserving the Long Island Sound. In 1999, she was voted one of the 50 Most Influential Latinas for her news coverage and reports by the Hispanic daily newspaper El Diario La Prensa. Previously, Morales spent two years working behind the scenes at Court TV.

Morales was an anchor and correspondent for MSNBC from 2002 to 2006. She covered a number of major news stories there including the 2004 Presidential election, the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, the Iraqi prisoner abuse, Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, the Northeast Blackout of 2003, the 2002 Beltway sniper attacks and the investigation and trial of Scott Peterson. Additionally, she was named one of Hispanic Magazine’s Top Trendsetters of 2003.

Morales joined the Today show in 2006 as a national correspondent,[9] and was named co-anchor of the third hour of the show in March 2008.[6][10] On May 9, 2011, it was announced that Morales would replace Ann Curry as the news anchor for Today, when Curry succeeded Meredith Vieira as host of Today in June 2011. In 2016 it was announced that Morales would be moving west to host Access and become the Today Show West Anchor. In 2019 Morales stepped away from hosting Access and remained on as the Today Show West Coast anchor.[11]

Personal life

Morales married Joseph Rhodes on August 22, 1998.[7] In 2002 they purchased a US$1 million townhouse in Hoboken, New Jersey, and expanded it in 2008 to 3,600 square feet. In June 2016, after Morales was made the Today show's West Coast anchor, the family put the Hoboken townhouse on the market, and moved into a house in Brentwood, California the following month. By October, the townhouse had sold for $3.1 million.[12]

In early 2004, Morales gave birth to a son, Josh, via C-section at Hoboken's St. Mary Hospital.[13] Their second son, Luke Hudson, was born in late 2008.[14]

Morales is an avid runner, having competed in five marathons, including three New York City Marathons. Morales also participates in triathlons.[15] She has been featured in a full-length article and on the cover of the October 2010 issue of Triathlete Magazine.[16]

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gollark: > Common Lisp's syntax allows programmers to declare variables before they're defined. That's where all of our problems start.
gollark: This is scarily like incoherent blog posts on programming things.
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References
  1. "TODAY anchors show their driver's license photos". Today. NBC News. September 21, 2012. Archived from the original on September 6, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
  2. Stelter, Brian (May 4, 2016). "NBC's Natalie Morales is heading west". CNN.
  3. Romano, Allison (November 19, 2007). "Natalie Morales: Fast Riser". Broadcasting & Cable. Archived from the original on April 20, 2008. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  4. Poppel, Seth. "Natalie Morales Senior Year 1990". YEARBOOK LIBRARY, USA. YEARBOOK LIBRARY, USA. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  5. "TAMING OF THE SHREW at Caesar Rodney Winter 1990". Stage Crew and Thespians. Stage Crew and Thespians. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  6. "Natalie Morales". Today. NBC News. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
  7. "WEDDINGS; Natalie Morales, Joseph Rhodes". The New York Times. August 23, 1998. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
  8. "Natalie Morales". Hollywood Life. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
  9. "NBC names Morales as 'Today' correspondent". USA Today. April 19, 2006. Retrieved February 18, 2011.
  10. "Kathie Lee Gifford joins fourth hour of TODAY". Today. NBC News. March 31, 2008. Retrieved February 18, 2011.
  11. Thielman, Sam (May 9, 2011). "'Today' sets new anchor lineup". Variety.
  12. Hyman, Vicki (October 10, 2016). "'Today' co-host Natalie Morales's Hoboken townhouse sells for asking, $3.1M (PHOTOS)". NJ.com.
  13. "Having it all: Anchor and Hoboken resident Natalie Morales reflects on motherhood, juggling family and career and the birth of her son". The Hudson Reporter. May 17, 2005. Retrieved June 29, 2012. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 16, 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  14. "Natalie Morales Raves About Age Difference Between Boys". People. December 23, 2009.
  15. Grant, Amanda (November 19, 2009). "Today Show's Natalie Morales: Hooked On Triathlon". Triathlete.com. Archived from the original on September 1, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
  16. Super Administrator (September 9, 2010). "Behind The Scenes With Natalie Morales". Triathlete.com. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
Media offices
Preceded by
Billy Bush and Claudia Jordan		 Hosts of Miss Universe with Bret Michaels
2010		 Succeeded by
Giuliana Rancic
Hosts of Miss Universe with Andy Cohen
2011
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