News anchor Barbara Walters who opened doors for female journalists dies at 93

Broadcast journalism icon Barbara Walters died Friday night at age 93. The former ABC News anchor and NBC “Today” show panel member will be immortalized for her role in opening doors for female reporters who now play a hugely significant role in the world of journalism.

Walters started her broadcasting career in 1961 as a writer and reporter for NBC’s “Today” show which she also appeared on as a panel member. She was eventually promoted to co-host in 1974 and joined ABC News as its first evening news female anchor in 1976.

She largely made her mark in the journalism world at ABC with “The Barbara Walters Specials” and “10 Most Fascinating People” before she rose in the ranks to becoming a correspondent for the investigative magazine television show, “20/20” in 1984.

She later interviewed celebrities with “Barbara Walters Specials” and on “The View,” in 1997 a show featuring a panel with women who often talk about issues that appeal to a largely female audience.

From then on, Walters became a journalism legend and household name as millions across America would look forward to tuning into her revelatory reports, which often resulted in water cooler discussion and commentary debate.

The View opened doors for other similar American and British talk shows such as “The Talk” (U.S.) and “Loose Women” (U.K.) and even other countries such as Norway’s “Studio5.”

She interviewed every president and first lady since Richard and Pat Nixon.

Walters left “The View” in 2014 but stayed on as an ABC News contributor until 2016, telling CNN’s Chris Cuomo she “knew it was time” to move on.

Her goodbye was heartfelt and also sad, she told Cuomo, “how do you say goodbye to something like 50 years in television?” and added the happiness it brought her to see so many women in television news.

“How proud I am when I see all the young women who are making and reporting the news. If I did anything to help make that happen, that is my legacy. From the bottom of my heart, to all of you with whom I have worked and who have watched and been by my side, I can say: ‘Thank you.’

Walters, who was married four times, and at time to colleagues in the television broadcast industry. She is survived by her daughter, Jackie, whom she adopted in 1968.