Background
Kotb was born in Norman, Oklahoma, and grew up in Morgantown, West Virginia and Alexandria, Virginia.
Kotb was born in Norman, Oklahoma, and grew up in Morgantown, West Virginia and Alexandria, Virginia.
She graduated from Fort Hunt High School in 1982. In 1986, Kotb graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcast journalism.
Kotb is also a correspondent for Dateline National Broadcasting Company. Kotb"s parents are from Egypt. Kotb and her family lived in Egypt for a year, as well as in Nigeria. She was elected Homecoming Queen and selected to speak at her graduating class" Baccalaureate service.
Kotb was the keynote speaker at her alma mater for the 2008 Virginia Technical graduation, and in her speech, played Metallica"s "Enter Sandman" over her iPod.
In 2010, Kotb was elected to a three-year term to the Virginia Technical Alumni Association Board of Directors. Kotb appears on the fourth hour of the Today Show, co-hosting with Kathie Lee Gifford.
She has also been a correspondent for Dateline National Broadcasting Company since 1998. Kotb occasionally fills in as the co-anchor of Today for Savannah Guthrie.
Kotb wrote a New York Times Bestselling book, Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee, which was released in hardcover in October 2010.
On January 15, 2013, she released her second book Ten Years Later: Six People Who Faced Adversity and Transformed Their Lives, in which she chronicles six stories by identifying a life-changing event in each subject"s life and then revisiting each of those six people a decade later. She has also appeared in Martina McBride"s music video for I"m Gonna Love You Through lieutenant 1986: Columbia Broadcasting System News - news assistant Cairo, Egypt
1986–1989: Morning anchor and general assignment reporter WQAD-television, American Broadcasting Company Moline, Illinois.
And anchor WXVT-television, Columbia Broadcasting System Greenville and Greenwood, Mississippi
1989–1991: Weekend anchor and reporter WINK-television Fort Myers, Florida
1992–1998: Anchor and reporter WWL-television, Columbia Broadcasting System New Orleans, Louisiana
1998–present: Dateline National Broadcasting Company correspondent
2004–2008: Host of the weekly syndicated series Your Total Health
2007–present: Company-host of the fourth hour of Today with Kathie Lee Gifford.
In her college years at Virginia Technical, Kotb was a member of Delta Delta Delta Women"s Sorority, Beta Nu Chapter.