R.I.P. Barbara Walters, trailblazing television journalist
Walters, who spent more than 60 years in TV news, was 93.
Barbara Walters, the pioneering TV journalist known for incisive and zeitgeist-capturing interviews, died yesterday, December 30, 2023, as confirmed by her spokesperson. She was 93.
“Barbara Walters passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by loved ones. She lived her life with no regrets. She was a trailblazer not only for female journalists but for all women,” Walters’ spokesperson Cindi Berger said in a statement to CNN.
Born on September 25, 1929, to Russian-Jewish emigrants Lou and Dena Walters in New York City, Walters was raised in show business. Her father, a nightclub owner and entrepreneur, opened his first club, the massively successful Latin Quarter, in Boston. He also produced Broadway shows.
However, she said that her father’s time in show business instilled in her a fighting spirit to provide for her and her family. “Because my father was in show business, and because there were these ups and downs, I always felt that I had to work to take care of myself,” she said. “But beyond that, I had an older sister, who was mentally challenged enough to make a very great difference in a whole family’s life. I always felt that I would have to take care of her even though she was older.”
After earning her degree from Sarah Lawrence in 1952, it took another decade for Walters to break through on television. Then, in 1961, she landed a spot as a writer on the Today show. She would soon go on to make regular appearances, including reporting on First Lady Jackie Kennedy’s trips to India and Pakistan in 1962 and interviewing Manhattanites after President Kennedy’s death in 1963.
It didn’t take long for her to start breaking boundaries. In 1974, she was named the show’s first female co-host, winning her first Emmy award in 1975 for Outstanding Talk Show Host. It would be the first of three Emmy wins and 20 nominations.
In 1976, she became the first female news anchor to be offered a multi-million dollar contract, earning $5 million to co-anchor evening news and host interview specials on ABC. That year, she launched the first of her “Barbara Walters Specials,” interviewing Barbara Streisand. Her interviews catapulted Walters to fame, making her the target of lampooning on Saturday Night Live. Gilda Radner’s impression, the character “Baba Wawa,” mocked Walter’s speech impediment, which made pronouncing “Rs” difficult for the anchor.
“In the beginning, I really minded. I still do today when somebody someone says, ‘There’s Baba Wawa,’” she later said. “But I went into my daughter’s room, and she was up late watching it, and I came in to scold her. I said, ‘How can you watch this? Look what she’s doing,’” and she said, ‘Oh, mommy, where’s your sense of humor?’”
She spent the next three decades becoming America’s most famous interviewer. In 1980, she became co-host of 20/20 and, over the next 30 years, spoke to the most famous people in the world, including Monica Lewinsky, Vladimir Putin, Katharine Hepburn, and Christopher Reeve. Each interview was a cultural touchstone, attracting massive viewership numbers and elevating her notoriety.
Walters co-created The View in 1997, creating a panel show that brings together “women of different generations, backgrounds, and views.” The all-female lineup consisted of Walters, journalist Meredith Vieira, lawyer Star Jones, television host Debbie Matenopoulos, and comedian Joy Behar. The View became a cultural institution that continues to make headlines and change the national conversation.
Walters stepped down from 20/20 in 2004, remaining a part-time contributor and on-air interviewer. She would continue to conduct special interviews, including one with former President Donald Trump and Melania in 2015.
Walters is survived by her daughter Jacqueline.