Veteran New York anchor Bill Ritter said Friday during WABC-TV’s Eyewitness News broadcast that doctors have diagnosed him with early-stage Alzheimer’s and that it would be his final night anchoring the 6 p.m. newscast.
“After a series of tests, my doctors have told me I have Alzheimer’s,” Ritter said on the broadcast. “It’s early-stage Alzheimer’s, and they say the treatments I’m getting are keeping it at bay, for now. But there is no guarantee, because there’s no cure yet for Alzheimer’s. So, unless someone finds an amazing cure, and soon, tonight will be the last newscast I anchor.”
ABC7 reported that Ritter, 76, joined WABC-TV in 1998 after a journalism career that included work at the Los Angeles Times, local television stations in California and positions with ABC News. He began anchoring the station’s 11 p.m. Eyewitness News in 1999 and was added to the 6 p.m. newscast in 2001; he also anchored the 5 p.m. broadcast for several years, ABC7 reported.
WABC-TV General Manager Marilu Galvez said in a statement that Ritter will remain with the station in a new role focused in part on reporting about Alzheimer’s and other neurological conditions. “For decades, Bill Ritter has covered and led New Yorkers through the stories that matter most,” Galvez said. “While he is stepping away from daily anchoring, he will continue to be an integral part of our ABC7 family, including sharing personal updates and providing resources to help others impacted by Alzheimer’s better understand the disease and the resources available to them.”
Ritter also noted during the broadcast that his father died from Alzheimer’s in 1998 after battling the illness for years, ABC7 reported.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
