Legendary broadcast journalist Barbara Walters has died, ABC News announced on Friday, December 30, 2022. Walters, who was 93 years old, died peacefully in her home in New York City surrounded by her loved ones, the network stated.

Best known for hosting “20/20” and “The View,” Walters made waves in 1974 when she  joined NBC’s “The Today Show” as the first woman to become co-host of a network television news program. “The fact I ended up on television – never ever thought that would happen,” Walters famously said of getting the job.

By 1976, Walters was scooped up by ABC to join the “ABC Evening News” as the program’s first female co-anchor, working alongside Harry Reasoner. Although she would leave the show in 1978, Walters continued to provide content for what would later evolve into “World News Tonight.” Walters cotninued making waves, hosting the annual “10 Most Fascinating People” year end wrap up show. It was one of the most sought after and coveted lists for celebrities and political figures to get on.

In 1979, Walters began work on ABC’s “20/20” as a correspondent. By 1984, she was working alongside Hugh Downs as the show’s co-anchor. The two would remain a primetime staple until Downs left the program in 1999. Walters herself also left the program in 2004 as co-anchor. She would continue as a frequent contributor until around May 2014, when she retired from regular television broadcasting. Her on-air farewell took place during a broadcast of ABC’s flagship daytime talk show, “The View,” which she co-created and co-hosted from the program’s debut in August 1997 until her departure in 2014.

“Barbara was a true legend, a pioneer not just for women in journalism but for journalism itself. She was a one-of-a-kind reporter who landed many of the most important interviews of our time, from heads of state to the biggest celebrities and sports icons,” said Disney CEO, Bob Iger of Walters. “I had the pleasure of calling Barbara a colleague for more than three decades, but more importantly, I was able to call her a dear friend. She will be missed by all of us at The Walt Disney Company, and we send our deepest condolences to her daughter, Jacqueline.”

Watch a clip below from Friday’s broadcast of “World News Tonight with David Muir,” honoring the life of Walters. “Baraba was brave. She was a trailblazer, a barrier breaker,” said David Muir, the program’s current host, of his former colleague.