Barbara Walters, a barrier-breaking news reporter and anchor, died Friday at 93.
Walters carved out a career as a pioneering newswoman, eventually becoming the highest-paid anchor on TV with the first $1 million contract.
She served as a co-host of NBC’s Today, co-anchor of ABC’s evening news, did high-profile, highly rated revealing interviews of newsmakers on 20/20 and created the talk show The View.
She retired from TV in 2014.
“Barbara was a true legend, a pioneer not just for women in journalism but for journalism itself,” Bob Iger, chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Co., said. “She was a one-of-a-kind reporter who landed many of the most important interviews of our time, from heads of state to the biggest celebrities and sports icons. I had the pleasure of calling Barbara a colleague for more than three decades, but more importantly, I was able to call her a dear friend. She will be missed by all of us at The Walt Disney Company, and we send our deepest condolences to her daughter, Jacqueline.”
Walters started working as a writer on NBC’s Today show in 1961. She became the show’s first female co-host in 1974.
Walters jumped to ABC News in 1976, where she became the first woman to anchor on an evening newscast, sharing a desk with Harry Reasoner. She broke records by signing a five-year $5 million contract. Three years later she became co-host of 20/20, ABC’s newsmagazine.
Walters’ famous Most Fascinating People specials started airing in 1994 and in 1999, 74 million people tuned in when she interviewed White House intern Monica Lewinsky about her affair with President Bill Clinton.
In 1997, she launched her talk show, The View.
Over a career that lasted five decades, Walters won 12 Emmy awards, 11 of those while at ABC News.
ABC News renamed part of its New York headquarters The Barbara Walters Building in 2014.
"A pioneer in her field, she had the uncanny ability to make even the most challenging of issues easy to understand. As the first woman to ever co-host a network news program, she was a hero to many, and she paved the way for generations of broadcasters. A fixture on the news for decades, she helped keep millions informed about issues facing our world. She never shied away from asking tough questions of some of the world’s most interesting and controversial people," SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said of Walters. Walters joined AFTRA in 1954 and SAG in 1991.
"To be the first woman at anything speaks volumes to the strength and character of that woman, but to be the first woman in network news suggests a woman of intellect, tenacity and a fearless ability to uncover, confront and illuminate; in short, the one and only Barbara Walters," said Drescher. "She blazed a trail for many other women to follow, who can pursue the possible because Barbara Walters did it first!" ■
