Bill Ritter, an anchor for WABC-TV New York’s ABC7 Eyewitness News since 1999, announced Friday during his staple 6 p.m. newscast that he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and is stepping down from the role.
Ritter, a San Diego native whose journalism career started in Los Angeles first with the Los Angeles Times and later at NBC’s affiliate in San Diego and at L.A. station KTTV-Fox 11, has been at WABC-TV since 1998.
He said tonight he would depart as an anchor effective immediately but continue to cover special projects for Eyewitness News that focus on Alzheimer’s and similar conditions. The news story on the station’s website carried his own byline.
“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,” he told viewers.
Ritter had been paring back his duties at the news station since he turned 75 last year, first stepping down from anchoring the 11 p.m. newscast that he had fronted since 1999, and then later the 5 p.m. news. He has anchored the 6 p.m. newscast since 2001.
Originally, he told viewers, the plan was to spend more time with his family, but he said on-air tonight that idea “has now become even more important, because my life has taken a turn.”
“For decades, Bill Ritter has covered and led New Yorkers through the stories that matter most,” said Marilu Galvez, GM of ABC7/WABC-TV New York. A defining presence at ABC7, he has done so with exceptional insight, integrity, and, most of all — heart, earning the love and respect of viewers and colleagues alike. 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. Bill is strong, brilliant, and resourceful, and we look forward to his continued reporting on Eyewitness News.”
