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New York anchor Bill Ritter announces Alzheimer’s diagnosis during his final Eyewitness News broadcast
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Veteran New York news anchor Bill Ritter revealed Friday that he has been diagnosed with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease, bringing an end to his more than two-decade run behind the WABC-TV anchor desk.
Ritter, 76, who has anchored the station’s 6 p.m. newscast in New York City since 2001, revealed during Friday’s Eyewitness News broadcast that it would be his final night anchoring the program.
“After a series of tests, my doctors have told me I have Alzheimer’s,” Ritter said during the broadcast.
“It’s early-stage Alzheimer’s, and they say the treatments I’m getting are keeping it at bay, for now,” he continued. “But there is no guarantee, because there’s no cure yet for Alzheimer’s.”
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Veteran New York news anchor Bill Ritter announced that he has been diagnosed with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease and is stepping away from the WABC-TV anchor desk. (Linda Rosier/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
“So, unless someone finds an amazing cure, and soon, tonight will be the last newscast I anchor,” he added.
According to ABC7, Ritter joined WABC-TV in 1998 after an extensive 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 broadcast in 1999 and was added to the flagship 6 p.m. newscast in 2001. He also anchored the station’s 5 p.m. broadcast for several years.
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Bill Ritter has anchored WABC-TV’s 6 p.m. newscast in New York City since 2001. (Heidi Gutman/Disney via Getty Images)
ABC7 reported that Ritter will remain with the station in a new role focused in part on reporting about Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological conditions, as well as their impact on patients and families.
“For decades, Bill Ritter has covered and led New Yorkers through the stories that matter most,” WABC-TV General Manager Marilu Galvez said in a statement.
“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,” she continued.
“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.”
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Bill Ritter, Eyewitness News Anchor, WABC-TV, speaks onstage at the ROAR Forward Summit at Hearst Tower on November 19, 2024 in New York City. (Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Hearst)
“Bill is strong, brilliant, and resourceful, and we look forward to his continued reporting on Eyewitness News,” Galvez added.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani responded to Ritter’s announcement by wishing the veteran broadcaster and his family “strength in the days ahead.”
“For decades, Bill Ritter has been a trusted presence in New Yorkers’ homes, helping us make sense of the news that shape our city,” Mamdani wrote on X. “
“His courage in sharing his Alzheimer’s diagnosis will help countless families facing the same challenge feel less alone,” he continued. “Wishing Bill, his loved ones, and everyone affected by Alzheimer’s strength in the days ahead.”
Ritter’s colleagues also reacted to his announcement.
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WABC-TV reporter Lucy Yang paid tribute to Ritter’s professionalism and dedication during his decades-long career at the station.
“For decades, I’ve reported for his show and even filled in, anchored w him,” she posted on X. “He never gave less than 110% I salute you. I thank you. And I will pray for you.”
Lee Goldberg, the station’s chief meteorologist, said Ritter’s influence would continue long after he stepped away from the anchor desk.
“He preaches be kind, take care of each other, & we’re all in this together,” Goldberg said on X. “Now, in addition to doing these things for himself & his loving family, he’ll build on his legendary legacy by helping millions who share his battle.”
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“You’re a saint, and my hero @billritter7,” he added. “Love you.”
Ritter also noted during the broadcast that his father died from Alzheimer’s disease in 1998 after battling the illness for years.
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US issues new guidance on alcohol consumption
Fox News medical contributor Dr. Nicole Saphier joins ‘Fox & Friends Weekend’ to weigh in on new dietary guidance surrounding alcohol consumption as the overall drinking rate hits a new low.
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A new study is challenging the conventional wisdom that a small, daily dose of alcohol might be good for your health.
The research, published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, suggests that the safest amount of alcohol to consume is actually none at all. If adults do choose to drink, the team of scientists recommends setting a limit of one per day.
This challenges older guidelines, which often suggested that up to two daily drinks for men was a safe limit.
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“While the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines contain a useful ‘less-is-best’ message, they provide no quantitative framework,” study co-author Timothy Naimi, director of the University of Victoria’s Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, said in a press release.
“Our study was designed to do just that across the drinking spectrum.”
Researchers analyzed data on alcohol-related injuries and illnesses and compared it with large national health and demographic databases. (iStock)
Researchers reached their conclusions by analyzing data on alcohol-related injuries and illnesses and comparing it with large national health and demographic databases, according to a press release.
Using statistical models, they examined how regular alcohol consumption is linked to life expectancy.
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“Even low levels of alcohol use come with health risks,” lead study author Kevin Shield, an associate professor at the University of Toronto, said in the same press release. “And that risk continues to increase the more someone drinks.”
After evaluating the cumulative risks for conditions like liver disease, stroke and certain cancers, the study suggests that the assumed benefits of drinking are heavily outweighed by the potential dangers.
Even low levels of alcohol use come with health risks, according to the researchers.
For those looking to protect their long-term health, researchers emphasized that cutting back to one drink or giving up alcohol entirely appears to be the best strategy.
Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, noted that this was an observational Canadian study looking at U.S. census data.
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“It is massive, but still not proof,” cautioned Siegel, who was not involved in the study. “I am impressed with the endpoint, which is to assess alcohol-specific mortality,” he added.
The doctor called the research “convincing” in terms of showing that even lower levels of drinking carry a mortality risk.
For those looking to protect their long-term health, researchers recommend cutting back to one drink or giving up alcohol altogether. (iStock)
“We are in the process of debunking previous research and public health statements that a small amount of alcohol is actually good for you, and replacing it with the more realistic and accurate notion that no amount of alcohol is good,” he told Fox News Digital.
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Alcohol affects multiple systems throughout the body, acting as a toxin that can compromise vital organs over time, according to the doctor.
Siegel warned that “alcohol is bad for the heart, the liver and the brain, and it increases inflammation and certain cancers, all of which lead to increased mortality risks.”
Alcohol affects multiple systems throughout the body, acting as a toxin that can compromise vital organs over time, according to a doctor. (iStock)
While the research offers an overview of public health trends, it is an observational study based on U.S. census data, meaning it can only show strong correlations and cannot prove direct cause and effect, the researchers acknowledged.
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Additionally, because the study relies on self-reported drinking habits, it is subject to the common limitation of individuals underestimating or misreporting their actual alcohol consumption.
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