Hoda Kotb Says She Was the Lowest Paid ‘Dateline’ Correspondent and Couldn’t Pay Her Bills All at Once

The news of Vanna White extending her Wheel of Fortune contract through to the 2025-2026 TV season had Hoda Kotb recalling her own difficulties getting a raise.

On Wednesday’s episode of Today With Hoda & Jenna, Kotb and co-host Jenna Bush Hager discussed the reports that White had not had a pay raise in nearly two decades.

According to Puck News, the 66-year-old TV personality hired an “aggressive new lawyer” to get her raise amid ongoing negotiations. Although White, who joined the show a year after it premiered in 1981, is undoubtedly synonymous with Wheel of Fortune, the outlet claimed she made $3 million a year, while Pat Sajak was earning five times that. Sony declined to comment on the report at the time.

News of White closing the deal to join a new season was announced on Tuesday. She also secured a separate pay raise for Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. This means in addition to being on hand to turn letters on Sajak’s last episodes, White will also be there when Ryan Seacrest takes over as host next fall.

The news shocked Kotb and Hager, who conceded that they understand how difficult it can be to ask for a raise.

“I think it’s one of the hardest things for women to do. I know for years I was definitely making a fraction of what my male co-anchors were making,” Kotb admitted, referencing her work at NBC as a Dateline correspondent in April 1998. “I actually never asked because I didn’t want to be difficult.”

“When I first came here I think I was the lowest paid correspondent at Dateline, it was pretty clear at the time,” she told Hager. “I remember thinking to myself, ‘I can’t pay my bills here,’ I couldn’t pay all my bills at the same time. So I was like, ‘I’ll pay this one, and then pay that one.'”

Hager said she finds it necessary to “teach our girls to both be humble [and] to work hard,” but added that they also have to emphasize that they should “not be afraid to ask for what they deserve.”

“Both things can be true. You can have grace and humility and still ask for what you deserve,” Kotb added. “Both of those things can happen at the same time.”

Still, the co-hosts agreed that they were happy White was able to “get her money,” with Kotb noting, “Lucky Ryan Seacrest that he gets to work with her, don’t you think?”

Just moments before news broke that White would be sticking around, ET spoke with Seacrest about how he was feeling about stepping into Sajak’s shoes. 

“He is a legend. I’ve looked up to him forever. He’s so good at that job, which, you know, is a little bit of pressure here,” Seacrest said of the 76-year-old host. “But he just said, ‘You’re going to have a great time. It’s so much fun. What’s better than giving away money and doing that every single night?’ I can’t wait to meet the contestants and do it.”

Sajak is enjoying one last victory lap as season 41 is currently underway. Seacrest said that’s exactly why they haven’t talked about the transition yet.

“He’s enjoying his last season,” Seacrest said. “I start next year. I think it’s a big celebratory season for him and the show.”

For the record, Sajak will be sticking around for three years after he steps down as host to serve as a show consultant. 

“So, yeah, he’ll be bossing me around,” Seacrest quipped. “Why not? I think he deserves that, yeah.”

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