Credit: ReutersBarbara Walters, the pioneering TV journalist whose interviewing skills made her one of the most prominent female figures in broadcast journalism, has died, her spokesperson confirmed. She was 93.
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There was no immediate word on the cause of Walters’ death. Walters was a familiar face on America’s television sets for more than 50 years, interviewing every president from Richard Nixon to Barack Obama and setting a standard few others could match.
“Barbara Walters passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by loved ones. She lived her life with no regrets. She was a trailblazer for female journalists and all women,” Walters’ spokesperson Cindi Berger told the media in a statement release.
Walters started her national broadcast career in 1961 as a reporter, writer, and panel member for NBC’s “Today Show” and contributor for NBC News before being promoted to co-host in 1974. In 1976, Walters joined ABC News as the first female anchor on an evening news program.
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ABC, the network where she last worked, aired a special report Friday night announcing Walters’ death and reflecting on her career. Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company, parent of ABC and ABC Evening News, said in a statement Walters died Friday evening at her New York City residence.
President Biden also memorialized Walters in a tweet on Saturday, calling her “an example of bravery and truth — breaking barriers while driving our nation forward.”
“Her legacy will continue as an inspiration for all journalists,” Biden added. “Jill and I send our deepest condolences to her daughter, Jacqueline, and to those who loved her.”
Walters was known in recent years as the co-creator and matriarch of the hit ABC daytime show “The View,” but older viewers remember her as the first female anchor of a network news program and the pre-eminent interviewer on television. She earned that reputation with a penchant for meticulous preparation, whether she was interviewing despots or divas, models or murderers.
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