Hoda Kotb can always count on her supportive co-host Jenna Bush Hager during tough mornings on Today with Hoda and Jenna.
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However, due to a prior assignment, Jenna was running late for the latest installment of the show, and Hoda decided to start off the show off solo. It was a hard day to do so.
VIDEO: Hoda Kotb breaks devastating news live on Today
In a first, she acknowledged the empty chair beside her and explained Jenna's absence, reassuring viewers that she would be in soon into the hour.
She then went on to talk about the school shooting that took place in Uvalde, Texas, and was visibly choked up, sniffling to hold back tears as the episode went on.
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"Today is like a different day," she said. "I'm feeling it. I feel like this is different."
Hoda continued: "It just made all of us pause," speaking directly to the camera as it framed around her for a powerful moment on the show.
Hoda addressed her viewers alone in the wake of the Texas school shooting
Talking of hearing others say that people will eventually move on from the tragedy, the NBC star added: "I don't know, I feel like this is a watershed moment. This is a moment where I think things change."
As she shared some photos of the victims, acknowledging that it was a "heavy" situation, she said: "When I look at these kids, I see the face of my kids."
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She was then joined by one of her executive producers, Talia, who was also a mom, and the two sat together to talk about how they processed the news with their children.
They shared the different emotions that ran through them in the moment, with Hoda saying: "I went from feeling despair to feeling angry."
Jenna was on-board the USS Bataan when the tragedy struck
Jenna did eventually join Hoda at the halfway point, talking about her overnight adventure on-board the USS Bataan.
She emotionally conveyed to her co-host how she didn't find out about the incident until the morning of the show and how it hit so much harder for her, as a mother, former teacher, and Texan.
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