The ABC veteran journalist will announce her retirement on her show 'The View' on Monday.
- May 13, 2013
AceShowbiz - Barbara Walters is looking forward to more relaxing days next year. The 83-year-old author and television personality has told ABC News that she will leave TV journalism in summer 2014.
"I am very happy with my decision and look forward to a wonderful and special year ahead both on 'The View' and with ABC News," she says. "I created 'The View' and am delighted it will last beyond my leaving it."
ABC News President Ben Sherwood responds to Walter's decision, "There's only one Barbara Walters. And we look forward to making her final year on television as remarkable, path-breaking and news-making as Barbara herself. Barbara will always have a home at ABC News and we look forward to a year befitting her brilliant career, filled with exclusive interviews, great adventures and indelible memories."
Walters will announce her retirement on "The View" when the show airs Monday, May 13. She will continue appearing on the talk show, reporting for ABC News and serving as anchors for ABC's specials throughout the year, including a "20 Years of 10 Most Fascinating People" special in December, an Oscars special, and a May career retrospective.
The former host of "20/20" will still be credited as an executive producer of "The View" even after her retirement. She reveals her plan after leaving TV journalism, "I do not want to appear on another program or climb another mountain. I want instead to sit on a sunny field and admire the very gifted women - and OK, some men too - who will be taking my place."
Rumor of Walters' retirement had sparked in March this year, but she didn't confirm it. "There were many reports last week that I was retiring from ABC and there was an assumption that I would be making an announcement today. The paparazzi were outside my home today... however, here I am, and I have no announcement to make," she said on "The View" at the time.
"The View" will also soon bid farewell to another of its original hosts, Joy Behar, who is set to leave the show at the end of the season.
