The Hollywood Reporter has the scoop:

Brian Williams is stepping away from NBC Nightly News for a number of days.

The anchor sent a note to the show’s staff, announcing that Lester Holt is replacing him for an unspecified amount of time. The news comes as Williams is embroiled in a scandal surrounding his story about being a passenger in a helicopter that took fire in Iraq in 2003.

Williams’ message about going on hiatus from his anchor chair went as follows:

“In the midst of a career spent covering and consuming news, it has become painfully apparent to me that I am presently too much a part of the news, due to my actions.

“As managing editor of NBC Nightly News, I have decided to take myself off of my daily broadcast for the next several days, and Lester Holt has kindly agreed to sit in for me to allow us to adequately deal with this issue. Upon my return, I will continue my career-long effort to be worthy of the trust of those who place their trust in us.”

Liberal columnist Maureen Dowd called Brian Williams a ticking time bomb for his penchant to inflate makeup stuff that never happened. While Williams’ memo says he’ll be gone only a number of days, it’s hard to see how he’ll recover and continue to keep his posh job, especially if NBC’s internal investigation uncovers even more fabrications.