The Leader of the Pack

6:00 AM PDT 4/10/2012 by Marisa Guthrie

It's war in the mornings as the "Today" host opens up about his new reported $25 million-a-year deal, a move that (most likely) keeps the NBC juggernaut on top, inspired a strange delivery by "GMA" and has the industry marveling over how one man alone has altered the landscape of TV news.

It is Friday, April 6, and Matt Lauer is pawing through a stack of newspapers in his dressing room above Today's Studio 1A. He scans a New York Times article about Keith Olbermann's nasty legal battle with Al Gore and the executives at Current, the latest in a string of former employers for the volatile cable news host. "Olbermann is suing Current for $70 million," says Lauer, betraying a hint of disbelief.