NBC News employee dies following coronavirus infection

A longtime employee of NBC News died after testing positive for coronavirus, the outlet reported Friday. 

Larry Edgeworth, a technician who worked in an equipment room at NBCUniversal’s headquarters in New York, died Thursday. He was 61.

He reportedly also suffered from other health issues.

He worked for 25 years at the news division as an audio technician, and he traveled around the world with correspondents during his career at the outlet.

“Many of you were fortunate enough to work with Larry over the years, so you know that he was the guy you wanted by your side no matter where you were,” NBC News Chairman Andy Lack wrote in a memo to staffers, NBC News confirmed

Lack said Stacy Brady, NBCUniversal’s executive vice president of field and production operations, “says he was known as the ‘gentle giant who would give you the shirt off his back.’ “

He is survived by a wife, Crystal, and two sons. Lack said in the Friday announcement that “We are doing everything we can to support his family during this very difficult time.”

MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle told viewers Friday morning about Edgeworth’s death and spoke while photos of the technician were displayed: “Larry, he’s the big guy you see right there on the left during a shoot in Namibia back in 2011. He spent most of his 25 years at NBC News as a skilled audio technician, traveling the world to bring you, our beloved viewers, the news. Many of us here were fortunate to work with him.” 

MSNBC correspondent Garrett Haake shared a photo of Edgeworth on Friday, tweeting “The man on the left is Larry Edgeworth. I met him as the sound tech on our team that covered the Romney campaign in 2012. He called me ‘slim,’ and helped me put together my first resume tape. He was SO proud of his kids. He was hilarious. Yesterday he lost his fight with COVID-19.”

The man on the left is Larry Edgeworth. I met him as the sound tech on our team that covered the Romney campaign in 2012. He called me “slim,” and helped me put together my first resume tape. He was SO proud of his kids. He was hilarious. Yesterday he lost his fight with COVID-19 pic.twitter.com/73D93utgPX

— Garrett Haake (@GarrettHaake) March 20, 2020

Other NBC employees also took to social media to share their condolences.

This is our beloved colleague, Larry Edgeworth, who just passed away due to COVID19. I adored him. He was full of spirit and joy and humor. He was the pro of pros. We traveled in 2008 on a campaign plane for two months. He was a bright light every day. Larry, dear, we will miss u pic.twitter.com/36Hg9WbiCG

— Savannah Guthrie (@SavannahGuthrie) March 20, 2020

RIP Larry Edgeworth. You had the best stories from a lifetime of covering news the world over. A gentle giant and nurturing soul. I’m sorry we never got those drinks when I came back to NY. You will be so missed. pic.twitter.com/rMWzcxwxbW

— Michelle Dubert (@michelledubert) March 20, 2020

This is the hardest tweet I have sent during this crisis. A cherished member of our @NBCNews family, Larry Edgeworth, has died from #Coronavirus. https://t.co/C1XP09d3XB

— Ali Velshi (@AliVelshi) March 20, 2020

Very sad to learn one of our colleagues, Larry Edgeworth, has died after testing positive for coronavirus https://t.co/urYdefEIoL

— Benjy Sarlin (@BenjySarlin) March 20, 2020

The news comes as other news organizations, including CBS News, CNN and The New York Times, are among those who have also reported having employees test positive for the virus.

Earlier this week, NBC News announced a “Today” show staffer had tested positive for the coronavirus, prompting co-hosts Craig Melvin and Al Roker to work from home on Monday out of an abundance of caution.

Other staffers who were in close proximity at NBC to the affected staffer were asked to self-quarantine.

On Wednesday, “Today” show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie announced she will work from home amid the pandemic as a precaution because she “wasn’t feeling her best.”

“This show’s been around a long time … but never has this happened before,” Guthrie told viewers at the top of the show on March 18. 

“Here’s what happened: I wasn’t feeling my best, a little sore throat, some sniffles. I wouldn’t have thought anything of it, but we are in different times, aren’t we?” she asked. “So in an abundance of caution, and also to really model the vigilance the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] is asking of all of us right now, we followed the advice of NBC’s medical team.”

“And so here I am, I’m working from home as we speak, and we’re still together,” the 48-year-old added. “And we’re gonna get this show on the air, and we have a lot of information we want to get to our viewers this morning.”

“Today” announced on March 12 that it was suspending live audiences to “help to decrease the rate of transmission in our communities.”

Several programs, including Stephen Colbert’s “Late Show” on CBS, John Oliver’s “Last Week Tonight” on HBO, “The Daily Show” with Trevor Noah on Comedy Central, Fox News Channel’s “Greg Gutfeld Show” and ABC’s “The View” also announced last week they were suspending tapings before live audiences until further notice.