Hoda Kotb (born August 9, 1964, in Cairo, Egypt) is an American journalist, television personality, and novelist. She co-hosts the NBC News morning show Today’s entertainment-focused fourth hour and is a key co-anchor. Kotb formerly worked as a journalist for the NBC news magazine show Dateline.
Early Years:
Kotb was born in the Virginia city of Alexandria. During the 1990s, she lived in New Orleans. Kotb’s parents are Egyptian immigrants. For a year, Kotb and her family resided in Egypt and Nigeria. Adel is her brother, while Hala is her sister. Sameha (“Sami”), her mother, worked at the Library of Congress. Abdel Kader Kotb, her father, was a fossil energy expert who was recognized in Who’s Who in Technology. In 1986, he died at the age of 51.
Private Life:
Burgis Kanga, a former tennis instructor at the University of New Orleans, married Kotb in 2005. In 2008, the marriage terminated in divorce.
In 2013, Kotb started dating New York financier Joel Schiffman. Kotb revealed her engagement to Schiffman live on Today on November 25, 2019. On January 31, 2022, during the fourth hour of Today (Hoda & Jenna), Kotb stated that she and Schiffman had broken up and would concentrate on co-parenting as friends.
Official Announcement of Their Breakup:
Hoda Kotb referred to Joel Schiffman and herself as “lifelong lovers” before announcing their breakup. The former couple has been together since 2013 and became engaged in November 2019. They have two kids, Hope, 2, and Haley, 4. However, during Monday’s broadcast of TODAY, Kotb disclosed that they are splitting up.
Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, Kotb, 57, and Schiffman, 63, have had to postpone their wedding many times during their engagement. She told PEOPLE around a month after the virus began spreading that they didn’t know when the wedding would take place, but that they already felt wedded.
“‘I want our friends and relatives, as well as the kids, to be here for this occasion,’ I told [Schiffman]. That would be fantastic, right? However, I have the impression that we are married. Obviously, I want to do that, but this entire circumstance has simply highlighted the family’s family “In April 2020, she stated.
“I’m overjoyed that we’ve decided to marry. I’m excited about our upcoming wedding, but we’ve always been lifetime partners “At the time, Kotb continued. “I’m thrilled to say ‘I do,’ and I’m also thrilled to do it whenever we need to, but it’s now just a formality for me.”
Kotb and businessman Schiffman had previously planned to marry in November 2020. The TV host opened her separation news on Monday’s TODAY with Hoda & Jenna by stating that fans have been questioning why she hasn’t been wearing her engagement ring. “Over the holidays, Joel and I had a lot of spiritual and profound talks and we determined that we’re better as friends and parents than we are as an engaged couple,” she added.
“It’s not as if something terrible happened. Some people believe that partnerships are supposed to last for a purpose, a season, or a lifetime. And I believe ours was only supposed to be there for a season “In her interview with co-host Jenna Bush Hager, she continued.
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Kotb went on to claim that she wanted to focus on her relationship with Schiffman’s “joyous moments.” “A lot of women know what it’s like to change your life trajectory, and I’m feeling pretty bold right now, which is a funny sensation,” she remarked. “But there are moments in life when you simply have to tell it like it is.”
“You may pretend to carry it and carry it. ‘Am I simply being optimistic?’ you wonder.” Kotb continued. “And you realize that optimism is like trying to fit a circle into a square — it doesn’t always work, and that’s good. To be able to admit it… I feel better now that I’ve spoken it.” For “Today” co-host Hoda Kotb, yesterday’s sadness is only the beginning of a new day.
Following her recent breakup with Joel Schiffman, the 57-year-old TV personality said that she is keeping her heart “open” to dating. While commemorating the 70th anniversary of NBC News’ “Today,” Kotb told People, “I haven’t really thought about who I would picture myself with, but I do have to say something.”
“At one point, my sister even questioned me, ‘Are you terrified of being alone?’ ‘I’m not going to be alone myself,’ I told her. And I’m not sure why I shouted it so emphatically, but I knew my heart was open. “My heart is open.” After eight years together, Kotb and Schiffman, 64, called off their engagement and announced their separation in late January.
Why Their Engagement Has Been Called Off?
Hoda says her engagement has been called off. “We decided we are better as friends and parents than we are as an engaged couple,” she says. pic.twitter.com/zOJrvhE6wZ
— TODAY with Hoda & Jenna (@HodaAndJenna) January 31, 2022
Due to COVID-19, Schiffman proposed to Kotb in 2019, but their wedding preparations were put on hold. “I wanted to bring your attention to something that I believe a few of you have observed. “People have written in asking why I’m not wearing my engagement ring,” the host stated at the start of Monday’s show. “Over the holidays, Joel and I had a lot of spiritual and profound talks, and we came to the conclusion that we’re better as friends and parents than as an engaged couple.”
In 2019, Schiffman proposed to Kotb, but their wedding preparations were put on hold because of the COVID-19 epidemic. Haley Joy, 5, and Hope Catherine, 2, are the two adopted kids of the former couple, who started dating in 2013. Hoda Kotb and Joel Schiffman call off their engagement, saying they’d rather be friends. Kotb stated, “I feel blessed to have spent eight years with him.”
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“It’s not like something occurred,” Kotb said of her breakup with the investor. “They say relationships are intended to be for a purpose, for a season, or for a lifetime, and I believe ours was supposed to be for a season.” “I consider myself fortunate to have spent eight years with him,” she added. “We’re both OK, we’re both on our way, and we’ll raise those gorgeous children well.”
