(Fwrd Axis) — Legendary journalist Barbara Walters has died at age 93, ABC News confirmed in a statement on Friday night.
Walters’ representative, Cindi Berger, confirmed the longtime journalist died “peacefully in her home surrounded by loved ones.”
“She lived her life with no regrets,” Berger said. “She was a trailblazer not only for female journalists, but for all women.”
ABC News aired a special report Friday night announcing Walters’ death.
“Barbara was a true legend, a pioneer not just for women in journalism but for journalism itself. 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,” Bob Iger, the CEO of The Walt Disney Company said in a statement Friday.
BREAKING: Barbara Walters, who shattered the glass ceiling and became a dominant force in an industry once dominated by men, has died. She was 93. https://t.co/tydwREgTb2 pic.twitter.com/b4jOEHVYFE
— ABC News (@ABC) December 31, 2022
Walters was more recently known for her work as the co-creator of the hit ABC daytime show “The View” but others will remember her for being the first female anchor of a network news program and her countless interviews with celebrities, world leaders, and models.
Barbara Walters graduated from Sarah Lawrence College with a bachelor’s degree in English and broke into the journalism world as an assistant at NBC affiliate WRCA-TV. She married businessman Robert Henry Katz in 1955 before the two divorced three years later.
Walters’ career was defined and likely saved by her interview style. Her first being with President-elect Jimmy Carter and managed a joint interview with Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.
“I do so much homework, I know more about the person than he or she knows about themselves,” Walters said in a 2014 interview.
Walters launched “The View” featuring celebrity panelists as co-hosts. Whoopi Goldberg, Star Jones, Lisa Ling, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Rosie O’Donnell, and Meghan McCain were among some of the famous panelists.
With the show currently airing, Goldberg and Behar remain as its two main and longest-running panelists.
