Tom Llamas On Honoring Your Roots and Raising Your Hand

Making Space with Hoda Kotb

NBC News

Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Society & Culture, Spirituality, Nbc News, Education, Motivation, Nbc, Today Show, Daily Boost, Self-improvement, Hoda, Today, Self Help, Make Space, The Today Show, Making Space, Feel Good, Making Space With Hoda Kotb, Inspiration, Hoda Kotb, Self Improvement

5 • 9.5K Ratings

🗓️ 25 June 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Tom Llamas is the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News. He got his start in news at just 15 years old as an intern for Telemundo in Miami. After 30 years in the news industry, he says raising his hand for opportunities helped get him to the anchor chair. Llamas is the son of Cuban immigrants, who fled the country when they were young. Growing up in a Cuban American community, Llamas says his family didn't shy away from discussing politics and current events. He opened up to Hoda about his upbringing, his love for storytelling, and the responsibility of anchoring an iconic broadcast.

Transcript

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0:00.0	If you ever needed proof that fierce determination and raising your hand pay off, this episode is for you.
0:14.4	So my guest today started off as an intern at Telemundo. He was just 15 years old. 30 years,
0:20.6	countless overnight shifts and multiple
0:22.5	roles later, he landed the big job, managing editor of NBC's evening broadcast. The show, by the way,
0:30.4	is now NBC Nightly News with Tom Yamas. His new job was celebrated throughout Tom's hometown of Miami, but no one was more
0:39.0	proud than his parents, both of whom fled from Cuba when they were young. Tom's career in
0:45.2	journalism, he says, is inspired by their story and his desire to understand his place in the world.
0:51.9	Growing up in a Cuban-American household, the news was always on, and current
0:55.9	events were always the topic of conversation around the dinner table. Those moments helped shape Tom
1:01.6	into the inquisitive journalist we now see. But the topic today is Tom himself, his love for
1:09.1	storytelling, his connection with the people whose stories he shares,
1:13.1	and the beautiful way he is carrying on his parents' legacy. To Tom, this is more than a job. It is
1:19.9	a responsibility and an honor. This guy, he's about to blow you away. I'm Hoda Kotby. Welcome to
1:27.1	my podcast, Making Space.
1:38.8	Well, Mr. Yamis, this is the first time I've seen you since you've taken over the nightly
1:43.5	desk. So first of all, congratulations. Thank you. Second of all is the first time I've seen you since you've taken over the nightly desk.
1:46.1	So first of all, congratulations.
1:47.0	Thank you.
1:50.3	Second of all, is the job what you thought it was?
1:52.9	It is, and it's more than that.
1:53.5	It's a lot more.
1:58.8	And there were things that, you know, as you know, because you had a major, major role at today's show.
	...

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