Savannah C. Guthrie

Background

Savannah Clark Guthrie was born on December 27, 1971, in Melbourne, Australia, where her father was working as a mining engineer. Her family returned to the United States during her early childhood, and she grew up in Tucson, Arizona, with her older brother Camron and sister Annie.

Guthrie attended Amphitheater High School in Tucson. Her father died in 1988, when she was sixteen, and her mother later worked at the University of Arizona. Tucson remained an important setting in Guthrie’s personal and professional life, including the beginning of her television career.

Education

Guthrie attended Amphitheater High School in Tucson before studying journalism at the University of Arizona. The university, founded in 1885, is Arizona’s principal public research university and has long provided professional training in journalism and communications. Guthrie graduated in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism and worked on student television productions during her studies.

She later attended Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C., while continuing freelance television reporting. Georgetown Law, founded in 1870, is one of the United States’ major law schools and is closely associated with legal practice and public affairs in the nation’s capital. Guthrie received her Juris Doctor degree magna cum laude in 2002 and achieved the highest score on that year’s Arizona bar examination.

Career

Guthrie began in local television after graduating from the University of Arizona. Her early work included reporting and anchoring at Kmiz, an ABC affiliate in Columbia, Missouri, from 1993 to 1995, followed by reporting and anchoring at Kvoa, an NBC affiliate in Tucson, from 1995 to 1999. She subsequently worked as a freelance reporter for WRC-TV in Washington, D.C., from 2000 to 2002, covering the September 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon and the anthrax mailings.

After earning her law degree, Guthrie practiced white-collar criminal-defense litigation at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld from 2002 to 2003. She returned to television journalism in 2004 as a correspondent for Court TV, covering national trials and legal affairs, including the Michael Jackson child-molestation trial, the Zacarias Moussaoui trial, the Scooter Libby case, and the confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito.

Guthrie joined NBC News in 2007 as a national correspondent and became the network’s White House correspondent from 2008 to 2011. Her reporting included the 2008 presidential campaign and major political and national-security stories. She joined Today in 2011, became co-anchor in 2012, and continued to serve as NBC News’ chief legal correspondent. Today, first broadcast in 1952, is one of American television’s longest-running morning news programs and combines news reporting, interviews, commentary, and cultural coverage.

Guthrie has also worked as an author and television producer. She co-wrote the children’s books Princesses Wear Pants and Princesses Save the World, and wrote Mostly What God Does, a book of reflections on Christian faith published in 2024.

Achievements

• Guthrie became NBC News’ White House correspondent and later co-anchor of Today, establishing a long-running national television career that combined political reporting, legal analysis, interviews, and morning-news broadcasting.

• She covered major legal and national stories, including the September 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon, anthrax mailings, high-profile criminal trials, presidential campaigns, and Supreme Court-related news.

• She co-wrote bestselling children’s picture books that developed the Princesses Wear Pants series and later inspired the animated series Princess Power.

Works

More photos

• memoir

  • Mostly What God Does: Reflections on Seeking and Finding His Love Everywhere

    (Guthrie’s book of personal and spiritual reflections exam...)

    2024

• picture book

  • Princesses Wear Pants

    (Co-written with Allison Oppenheim and illustrated by Eva ...)

    2017
  • Princesses Save the World

    (Co-written with Allison Oppenheim and illustrated by Eva ...)

    2018

Religion

Guthrie has publicly described Christianity and her relationship with God as important parts of her life. Her 2024 book, Mostly What God Does, presents reflections on faith, divine love, doubt, grief, and the search for meaning within a Christian framework.

Christianity is a worldwide religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, with traditions that emphasize love of God, compassion, forgiveness, and service to others. Guthrie has described faith as compatible with curiosity and emotional honesty rather than dependent on denying sorrow or uncertainty.

Views

Guthrie’s published reflections emphasize faith, love, compassion, curiosity, and the acceptance of uncertainty. In Mostly What God Does, she presents belief as a continuing search shaped by personal experience, grief, doubt, and the conviction that divine love remains central to human life.

Her children’s books similarly emphasize self-expression, courage, practical action, cooperation, and the idea that identity should not be restricted by conventional expectations. These themes connect her religious writing and children’s literature through an emphasis on kindness and purposeful action.

Membership

Guthrie has been associated with the State Bar of Arizona and the District of Columbia Bar through her legal practice. She was also a member of the Order of the Coif while at Georgetown University Law Center, an honor society recognizing high academic achievement in legal education.

• Admitted to practice law after receiving the highest score on the Arizona bar examination.

  State Bar of Arizona , United States

  2002

• Admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia.

  District of Columbia Bar , United States

  2002

• Recognized for high academic achievement at Georgetown University Law Center.

  Order of the Coif , United States

  2002

Personality

Colleagues and institutional profiles have described Guthrie as highly prepared, knowledgeable, thoughtful, and capable of responding effectively during live interviews and breaking news coverage. Her public work has combined legal precision with an approachable television style.

Quotes from others about the person

• NBC News executives and colleagues have praised Guthrie’s preparation, intelligence, legal knowledge, and ability to conduct live interviews under pressure. The University of Arizona has highlighted her commitment to fairness, accuracy, speed, precision, and thoughtfulness in journalism.

Interests

• Guthrie has maintained interests in journalism, law, children’s literature, Christian faith, and television production.

Connections

Guthrie was married to BBC journalist Mark Orchard from 2005 until their divorce in 2009. She married communications consultant Michael Feldman in 2014, and they have two children, Vale and Charles “Charley” Feldman.

Her mother is Nancy Guthrie, and her siblings include Annie Guthrie and Camron Guthrie. Guthrie has spoken publicly about her father’s death in 1988 and about the influence of her mother on her family and faith.

Father:

Charles Guthrie

Mining engineer who died in 1988.

Mother:

Nancy Guthrie

Influenced Guthrie’s education and public discussions of family and faith.

Ex-husband:

Mark Orchard

BBC journalist; Guthrie was married to Orchard from 2005 until their divorce in 2009.

husband:

Michael Feldman

Communications consultant and partner of The Glover Park Group; married Guthrie in 2014.

Daughter:

Vale Feldman

Son:

Charles “Charley” Feldman

Sister:

Annie Guthrie

Brother:

Camron Guthrie

References

• NBC News and TODAY biography Documents Guthrie’s roles as co-anchor of Today, NBC News chief legal correspondent, and primary anchor for election coverage.
• Savannah C. Guthrie: 2018 Hall of Fame inductee Documents Guthrie’s University of Arizona journalism education, early career, professional values, and Matrix Award.
  2018
• Spotlight: Savannah Guthrie (L’02) Describes Guthrie’s legal education, work at WRC-TV and Akin Gump, Court TV career, NBC News appointment, and transition to Today.
  2012
• Savannah Guthrie: Biography, Journalist, Lawyer, Today Show Provides biographical information about Guthrie’s birth, upbringing, education, local television career, legal practice, NBC work, family, and authorship.
  2026