NBC News’ “Meet the Press” program on Sunday witnessed not only an appearance by President-elect Barack Obama, but also an official announcement of the long-running show’s new host. The network selected David Gregory to replace the late Tim Russert as the moderator of the top-ranked Sunday morning talk show following months of deliberation.

Tom Brokaw, who became the show’s temporary host in June after the unexpected death of Tim Russert, “Meet the Press’” moderator since 1991, made the decision public on Sunday and said that David Gregory would take the helm starting with next week’s episode.

Beside his new job, the 38-year-old chief White House correspondent will serve as a contributor for “Today” and as an analyst on MSNBC and NBC News during special events, according to an announcement made by the network.

A journalist who started working for NBC News in 1995, David Gregory was MSNBC’s chief anchor throughout this year’s presidential campaign coverage and teamed with Rachel Maddow, Eugene Robinson, Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann on Election Night.

David Gregory told viewers that he would do his best in order to keep up with the show’s pertinent requests in an attempt to make the late Tim Russert proud of his work.

Moreover, NBC News president Steve Capus explained that choosing David Gregory was “a natural decision,” because he owns a complete “skill set” as a broadcast journalist.

The official announcement came after weeks of speculation with regard to his selection as the show’s new moderator, although the network had considered numerous candidates including important names such as Andrea Mitchell, Gwen Ifill and Chuck Todd.

“Meet the Press” represents the longest-running television show in worldwide broadcasting history, as it made its debut on November 6, 1947, with creator Martha Rountree as a moderator. She has been the show’s only female host so far.

The program was initially presented as a 30-minute press conference with a single guest and a panel of questioners.

Under Tim Russert, who died on June 13, 2008, the Sunday morning show was expanded to one hour and underwent several other changes.

NBC also announced on Sunday that Betsy Fischer, who has served as the program’s executive producer since 2002, would maintain her duties for “several years.”

Betsy Fischer joined “Meet the Press” 17 years ago while she was still in college.

The NBC talk show has effortlessly outshone other Sunday morning political programs throughout time. Last month, “Meet the Press” averaged 4.5 million viewers a week, while ABC’s “This Week” with George Stephanopoulos registered an average of 3.5 million viewers and CBS’ “Face the Nation” with Bob Schieffer averaged 3.1 million, according to figures released by Nielsen Media Research.