In a matter of days, A.J. Clemente has gone from reporting the news to being the news.
The North Dakota anchor was fired after one broadcast due to an incident in which he uttered back-to-back curse words in his first moments on air.
He was subsequently the subject of a David Letterman Top 10 list and he appeared this morning on Today.
Clemente told Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie that watching the snafu was "gut-wrenching" and he makes no excuses for what happened.
"It’s inexcusable, first, to even say those words," he said. "Fireball shot came right out of my mouth."
A.J. also understands why he is now out of a job.
"I fully expected that they would fire me," he said. "I even called my news director after and apologized again. They did [what they had to do]. No animosity at all."
Clemente will be a guest on The Late Show this evening, and from there? He says he doesn’t have any exact professional plans.
"I’m looking forward, moving forward,” he told the hosts. "You got to have a tough skin in this business, and it’s good to laugh at yourself."
Sounds like advice Lauer could benefit from as well.