There’s a news conference happening right now on the anchor changes coming to “Today.” Taking part: Steve Capus, NBC News President, Jim Bell, Executive Producer of “Today,” and anchors Matt Lauer, Meredith Vieira, Ann Curry, Al Roker, and Natalie Morales with Kathie Lee Gifford, Hoda Kotb, and Savannah Guthrie in the audience.

We’re listening in, and will update this post with the Q&A:

Capus: I appreciate you coming over on short notice… for the news of this state secret (laughter). It didn’t take Wikileaks to reveal this news.

Capus: Matt was absolutely right, Meredith is adored all around NBC News. To be able to turn to Ann and Natalie and Savannah in new roles and joining the linchpins of Matt and Al, we’re just thrilled.

Big round of applause for Hoda and Kathie Lee.

Bell: It’s truly been a pleasure working with Meredith. There’s no one else like here. I’m going to miss her terribly. We only had to go 10 feet over to the news desk for Ann Curry, who is really one of the best storytellers and beloved members of this family.

Vieira: I feel so good about Ann taking over because it will be entirely seamless. You don’t occupy a seat at TODAY forever. And now it’s time to go. And now it’s Ann’s Day.

Lauer: I have never enjoyed working with anyone more than Meredith.

Lauer: Ann and I have hosted the show together about 200 times in 15 years, so it feels totally natural.

Curry: [To Meredith] You’ve brought a graciousness to our broadcast. I don’t like change in the morning (laughter). [To Lauer] sitting next to you will be one of the greatest things in my life. [To

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TVNewser attended one of the few holiday parties still on the calendar. Producers, anchors and executives from CBS News and CBS Radio, and those of us who cover them, packed the 35th floor of CBS’s Black Rock headquarters last night.

We talked with The Early Show’s Julie Chen as she arrived, before telling us, “Okay, I’ve gotta go say hi to my husband.” Her husband, CBS Corp. CEO Les Moonves was a few feet away chatting with CBS PR honcho Gil Schwartz.

The rest of The Early Show team was in attendance too — Maggie Rodriguez, Harry Smith and Dave Price and Saturday anchors Erica Hill and Chris Wragge. Hill told us she is excited about her new CBS gig, while still contributing to CNN’s AC360. Wragge’s WCBS anchors were also there — Kristine Johnson, formerly an MSNBC anchor and weather guy Lonnie Quinn.

Katie Couric arrived after the Evening News. “How are things in TVNewser-land?” she asked us. “Great,” we said. We congratulated her on her ratings last week. “Oh, I don’t pay attention to those things,” she said motioning to CBS News president Sean McManus and Moonves who were a few feet away. Couric said, “As long as they’re telling us we’re doing okay.”

We chatted up CBS News correspondent Kelly Wallace, whose husband Matt Saal works across the street, almost literally, on MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show.

Charles Osgood, Morley Safer, Steve Kroft, and Troy Roberts, worked the crowd. And 48 Hours EP Susan Zirinsky told us, despite the media gloom and doom, she’s actually hiring for upcoming prime time projects.

And along with the holiday cheer, there was a lot of layoff talk, including someone who covers the industry…

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