Loyola University New Orleans alum Tom Llamas named as next anchor of the NBC Nightly News

NEW ORLEANS – Award-winning journalist and Loyola University New Orleans graduate Tom Llamas will succeed Lester Holt as the anchor and managing editor of the “NBC Nightly News” this summer, NBC News announced Wednesday.

Llamas, who graduated from Loyola in 2001 with bachelor of arts degrees in broadcast journalism, drama and speech, began his 25-year career at NBC. The Miami native rejoined the network in 2021 as an NBC News senior national correspondent and later became anchor of NBC News NOW’s “Top Story with Tom Llamas,” a one-hour primetime streaming newscast.

“Anchoring ‘NBC Nightly News’ is a profound honor and one that carries tremendous responsibility,” Llamas said in a statement from NBC News. “I look forward to working with the world-class journalists at ‘Nightly News’ and ‘Top Story’ to bring viewers the most important stories every night. Lester Holt is a great man and one of the most trusted broadcasters of our time. Just like Lester, I promise to be devoted to our viewers and dedicated to the truth.”

In addition to anchoring the Nightly News, Llamas will continue to anchor NBC News NOW’s “Top Story,” making him the first solo evening broadcast anchor to also anchor a primetime weekday one-hour newscast on streaming.

“Tom has always been a journalist in pursuit of excellence,” said Sheryl Kennedy Haydel, dean of the College of Music and Media at Loyola. “We couldn't be more proud of him. He is committed and deserving of this new opportunity.”

On NBC News NOW, Llamas leads special breaking news and special political coverage. He covered Election Night 2024 for the network, as well as the September 2024 Presidential Debate. He also has reported from major events in the United States and around the world, including the terror attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Eve, the Israel-Hamas War and the invasion of Ukraine.

Llamas has interviewed numerous world leaders, such as President Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Further, he is a regular fill-in anchor on the “NBC Nightly News” and reports regularly on “TODAY.”

Prior to his return to NBC News, Llamas was ABC’s chief national affairs correspondent and anchored the weekend editions of ABC’s “World News Tonight.” His started his journalism career at age 15 as an intern at the local Telemundo station in Miami and worked after graduating from Loyola as an overnight production assistant at NBC.

Llamas has been an active alumnus at Loyola, teaching master classes to journalism educators and mentoring graduates as they embark on their journalism careers. As one of Loyola’s most distinguished graduates, the College of Music and Media inducted Llamas into its Den of Distinction in 2015. The den is the college’s alumni Hall of Fame.

“We are proud beyond words,” said Robert Thomas, interim director of the School of Communication and Design at Loyola. “I witnessed his determination and enthusiasm as he learned the ins and outs of journalism. He is so deserving of this coveted seat.”

Lucy Bustamante, an anchor at WVUE-TV in New Orleans and a classmate of Llamas’s at Loyola, said she and a few close friends watched as Tommy became “Tom,” referencing his rise from college student through the network television ranks.

“He hustled day-in and day-out in our communications classes with the late Professor Nancy DuPont, as well as Professors Lisa Martin and Mary Blue,” Bustamante said. “We had exceptional teachers who raised us. Tommy lived in the Communications/Music Complex at Loyola, putting in the work. I couldn’t be prouder to see this happen.”