Matt Lauer

[Kath 153]

'Today' show host Matt Lauer and his wife are strongly denying a report saying they have broken up.

 

The National Enquirer is reporting that Lauer and his wife Annette, have split amid accusations of infidelity in their 12-year marriage.

 

However, Lauer tells People that the report is false.

 

"I am living in my apartment with Annette and my children as a family and a couple," he told People. "I have never moved out. I am not moving out. There is no truth to that."

 

Annette also denied the report to People. "Out of self respect, I want to stand up for our family and protect them," she told the magazine.

 

The Enquirer reports that the couple has been living apart for more than two months since she accused Lauer of cheating on her during his coverage of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver in February.

 

Suspicions allegedly arose when Matt not only stood his wife up on Valentine's Day, but also chose to remain in Vancouver for an extended period of time after the "Today" show crew wrapped production and returned to New York.

 

The 52-year-old married man reportedly "went wild" with colleagues at nightspots and caught the eye of two good-looking Canadian broadcasters.

 

Back in New York, Annette apparently learned about her husband's flirting with the two women from the wife of another "Today" show staffer. When Matt returned from his trip, he was allegedly confronted by his wife.

 

Though he denied her accusations, Matt moved out of their home after an explosive two-day fight, according to The Enquirer. Annette is reportedly no longer be wearing her wedding ring.

 

"I heard he and Annette are breaking up. I was not shocked to hear that but it's very sad," Matt's ex-wife, Nancy Alspaugh, told the mag.

 

The couple were briefly separated in 2006, when Annette, then pregnant with their third child, filed for divorce. However, she withdrew the divorce request after one month. The couple have three young children together - Jack, 8, and Romy, 6 and Thijs, 2.

 

According to a "Today" show insider, Matt is trying to keep the split on the "down low" because his NBC bosses are pressuring him to maintain his image as a solid family man to appeal to his largely female audience.

 

"Matt is still very involved in his children's lives," the source added. "He goes to the family apartment after he finishes his 'Today' duties to see the kids – and picks them up from school.

 

"For their sake, he and Annette plan to continue getting together on weekends – and they'll go to their house in the Hamptons."

 

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2010/05/...l#ixzz0ntngUbDH