Beloved WABC anchor Bill Ritter is set to announce his retirement during Friday evening’s broadcast because of Alzheimer’s disease, The Post has learned.
The 76-year-old newsman – who has been at WABC since June 1998 – stepped away from the 11 p.m. broadcast in March 2025 following 25 years on the nightly news desk.
Sources said it’s unclear whether Ritter, who has three children, will announce his Alzheimer’s diagnosis on air.
He’s described by journalists who have worked with him as a “real newsman” who is “well- respected” and “actively involved in making the newscast better.”
“He’s everything you want in a New York City anchor. He sets a standard for all of us,” a source said.
Ritter took over the 11 p.m. news for Bill Beutel in 1999. He currently anchors the 6 p.m. broadcast with Liz Cho.
Before his transition to ABC, Ritter spent the early 90s covering the Los Angeles area, according to his bio.
He was a reporter for KCAL-TV throughout 1992, following a stint at KTTV-TV from 1990 to 1991, where he gained prominence for his coverage of the Los Angeles riots and the Rodney King trial.
Earlier in his career, he earned four Emmy Awards for his investigative work at San Diego’s KNSD-TV.
Those honors stemmed from his reporting on a 1989 stock scandal and a 1987 investigation into safety protocols at Sea World of California regarding trainers and killer whales.
In 1983, he launched his long-standing relationship with ABC News.
He began co-anchoring “Good Morning America Sunday” in 1993 and later became a “20/20” correspondent in 1997.
His work there frequently focused on health-related investigative pieces, ranging from prostate cancer awareness to the COVID-19 pandemic.
His professional portfolio spans decades of high-profile national and local coverage, including events such as the TWA Flight 800 tragedy, the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing, the OJ Simpson legal proceedings, and the death of Princess Diana.
He also provided on-the-ground reporting for notable local New York City cases, such as the Central Park assaults and the tragic death of Leiby Kletzky.
