\n\t\u201cJenna & Friends\u201d has found a permanent pal.<\/p>\n
\n\tSheinelle Jones<\/a>, the \u201cToday\u201d veteran who has gained notice over the years by co-anchoring the weekend and 9 a.m. weekday editions of the NBC News<\/a> morning franchise, will become the permanent co-host at 10 a.m. with Jenna Bush Hager<\/a>, according to two people familiar with the matter. Jones is expected to join Bush Hager live at 10 a.m. Tuesday to announce the new arrangement formally to viewer, according to one of these people.<\/p>\n \n\tNBC News declined to make executives or hosts available for comment. Talia Parkinson-Jones, the hour\u2019s executive producer, is expected to remain in that role. Jones will begin appearing as co-host starting January 12, and is likely to continue to appear during earlier \u201cToday\u201d hours.<\/p>\n \n\tNBC is betting that Jones\u2019 warmth and and Bush Hager\u2019s spirit will make for a formidable combination in TV\u2019s never-ending battle for daytime audience. \u00a0The 10 a.m. hour represents NBC\u2019s bid to compete for live viewership in the late mornings, and to carve out some of the ground also tilled by ABC\u2019s syndicated \u201cLive,\u201d with spouses Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos, or CBS\u2019 \u201cDrew Barrymore.\u201d The network has long called upon the hosts of \u201cToday\u201d at 10 a.m. to be looser than their colleagues in the show\u2019s earlier hours. And they may need to be. In this era of digital media, there\u2019s a wider field of rivals to consider, with everything from Alex Cooper\u2019s \u201cCall Her Daddy\u201d podcast to any number of TikTok personalities dispensing advice and inspiration.<\/p>\n \n\tNBC launched Bush Hager as the lead in the hour earlier this yea<\/a>r after her longtime co-host Hoda Kotb stepped away from daily work for NBC News<\/a>. As part of the process, Bush Hager has been paired with a rotating group of colleagues and celebrities that ranged from Evan Longoria and Taraji P. Henson to cast members from \u201cSaturday Night Live.\u201d <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI feel like our audience deserves the time to get to know a ton of different people, ton of different backgrounds. We\u2019re hoping to pull up the chairs to all different types of people,\u201d Bush Hager told Variety earlier this year.<\/a> \u201cI think there will be some surprises for sure. And so it\u2019s like when we know, I think we\u2019ll know.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tNBC News has found success in recent years by moving various \u201cToday\u201d personalities to bigger roles when they open. The current co-anchors of \u201cToday\u2019s\u201d flagship hours, Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin, both had roles at 9 a.m. before getting their current assignment. Hoda Kotb was made a co-anchor with Guthrie at 7 a.m. after working for years at 10 a.m. with Kathie Lee Gifford.<\/p>\n \n\tAudiences have watched Jones struggle through some difficult times. She was absent from NBC\u2019s airwaves for the better part of 2025 as she cared for her ailing husband, Uche Ojeh, who succumbed to brain cancer in May. Jones returned to her on-screen duties in September,<\/a> and audiences have remained interested in her well-being. She has been seen as a leading candidate for the 10 a.m. co-anchor role for several months, according to two people familiar with the situation.<\/p>\n