NBC Goes Back to The Future for New Today Show Boss

NBC is looking to the past as it looks to the future of the Today Show.

Noah Oppenheim was a Senior Producer of Today it was No. 1 in the ratings. Now he's returning to the morning show as the boss.

Oppenheim will be in  charge of the entire editorial operation of the Today Show. 

Oppenheim will fill the role that was briefly occupied by Jamie Horowitz, the onetime ESPN programming whiz who was fired in November shortly after he took the NBC job.

The LA Times reports that in recent years, Oppenheim has worked as a screenwriter in Los Angeles. He had been a program development executive for the production company Reveille and is the coauthor of a bestselling book series, "The Intellectual Devotional."

During his tenure at "Today," Oppenheim oversaw the 7 a.m. hour, which is where the bulk of the program’s hard-news reporting runs. But with his background in the entertainment business, he is expected to have a strong point of view on the program’s softer content as well.

His new position gives him control over the four hours of "Today" on television and its digital platforms. He will also be charged with finding ways to expand the "Today" brand name.

Oppenheim was a popular figure at "Today" during his previous stint, which ran from 2005 through 2008. NBC News executives said they believe that he will have the trust of staffers and anchors needed to enact a new strategy to challenge ABC’s "Good Morning America," the current ratings leader.

"Today" has a reputation of being a closed society that is resistant to change, and Horowitz apparently found that out during his short tenure at the program.