NEW YORK (AP) — Barbara Walters, the intrepid interviewer, broadcaster and program host who became the first woman to become a TV news superstar during a network career notable for its duration and variety, has passed away. She turned 93.
Walters’ death was announced Friday night by ABC on air and also by her publicist.
“Barbara Walters passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by loved ones. She lived her life without regrets. She was a pioneer not only for women journalists, but for all women,” publicist Cindi Berger said in a statement.
For nearly four decades at ABC, and before that at NBC, Walters’ exclusive interviews with rulers, royalty, and entertainers propelled her celebrity status to par with theirs, while placing her at the forefront of the trend in broadcast journalism that brought stars of TV reporters made. and put news programs in the race for higher ratings.
Walters made headlines in 1976 as the first female network news anchor, with an unprecedented $1 million annual salary that made him gasp and criticize (while lost in the outcry, her additional duties extended beyond news). Her drive was legendary as she competed – not only with rival networks, but with colleagues from her own network – for every major “catch” in a world filled with an increasing number of interviewers, including female journalists who had followed the path she had taken. .
“I never expected this!” said Walters in 2004, as a measure of her success. “I always thought I would be a writer for television. I never even thought I would be in front of a camera.”
But she was a natural in front of the camera, especially when approaching dignitaries with questions.
“I’m not afraid when I interview, I’m not afraid!” Walters told The Associated Press in 2008.
Walters is survived by her only daughter, Jacqueline Danforth.
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Moore, a longtime Associated Press TV writer who retired in 2017, was the main writer of this obituary. Associated Press journalist Stefanie Dazio contributed to this report from Los Angeles.
