Veteran news anchor Bill Ritter announced his retirement from ABC 7 New York following an early-stage Alzheimer’s diagnosis last week. Days after stepping away from the news desk, he opened up about the early warning signs he experienced before being diagnosed and the fear he felt after learning the news.
Appearing on Good Morning America on June 15, the 76-year-old broadcaster said he first noticed memory problems nearly two years ago.
“I realized I was forgetting people’s names and places,” Ritter recalled. “Didn’t know why this was happening.”
The longtime journalist said his wife, Kathleen, also noticed changes, though no one else seemed to.
Initially, Ritter believed his demanding work schedule was responsible for the changes. He gradually reduced his workload at WABC-TV, stepping away from the station’s 11 p.m. newscast and later leaving the 5 p.m. broadcast to focus solely on the 6 p.m. evening news.
The move allowed him to get more rest after years of overnight work, but the symptoms persisted. “I was sleeping for the first time at night; for the first time in 25 years,” Ritter said. “Finally getting a decent night’s sleep and it wasn’t getting better.”
Realizing something more serious could be happening, Ritter decided to undergo medical testing. “We said, ‘I gotta get tested,’” he recalled.
“And that really was an important thing. A lot of people say, ‘I’m fine, don’t worry about it, I’m going to be fine.’ No. You gotta go do this.”
Bill Ritter’s Reaction After Knowing About The Diagnosis
Ritter first disclosed his diagnosis during ABC 7’s 6 p.m. newscast on June 12, announcing that he would be stepping away from his longtime role as anchor.
Reflecting on the moment he received the diagnosis, Ritter said his thoughts immediately turned to his father, who died with Alzheimer’s disease in 1998.
“My first reaction was, I thought about my dad,” he said. “That was immediate. He just popped into my head.”
Moments later, fear set in.
“And then a couple of seconds later, I was scared,” Ritter admitted. “I don’t mind saying that. It was scary. Because it was like, ‘Wait a minute, I’m supposed to be doing this. What’s going on here?’”
Bill Ritter’s Biggest Concern
The Emmy-winning journalist said his greatest concern quickly became the impact the disease could have on his family.
“I quickly moved into husband/dad place because Alzheimer’s really affects the family most,” Ritter said. “As a dad and a husband, I said, ‘I gotta deal with this. This is my family. And that’s what I’m really worried about.’ They’re the real tough ones in this.”
He praised his wife Kathleen and their children for their strength throughout the diagnosis.
“My kids say, ‘Dad, you’re so brave in all this.’ And I’m not the one who is brave. It’s my kids and my wife who are the brave ones. That’s really the real case here,” he said.
Ritter also became emotional while discussing his decision to publicly share his diagnosis and make his final broadcast as an anchor.
“My job as a journalist is to speak honestly to the public,” he said. “Truth and facts are what we deal with. I figured I owed it to the viewers to be honest about this.”
What Is He Planning After Retirement?
Although he has retired from anchoring, Ritter said he is not stepping away from journalism entirely. He plans to continue working with ABC 7 and hopes to use his platform to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease.
“I think we have an opportunity,” he said. “I wasn’t aware of the opportunity so much until this weekend happened and we were just inundated with information and people saying, ‘Help us.’ So we’re going to do that.”
Looking ahead, Ritter said he is ready to embrace a new chapter and bring viewers along on his journey.
“After this interview, I’m going to go to our Monday morning meeting and then I’m going to go to my desk and have day one of the new job. That will be to bring people into the tent, because I think that’s what we want,” he concluded.
