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Bill's first report post the anchor desk in his new role. He's already hitting the ground running with this. Glad to see him remain present in some capacity. He talks to Maria Shriver about her father's battle with the devastating disease.

Why should they do anything but what he, his employer, his family, and his doctors agree is best for all involved?

Bill went on GMA to talk about his diagnosis:

Missing from this of course is the reaction from the anchor desk the moment the knicks won (i had been dvring the various 11pm newscasts since i wanted to have the reactions should the knicks have won (of course, they did) but didn't get the whole reaction since the DVR cut off where SNL would've started). 2 was also at the anchor desk when the buzzer sounded and they got pretty emotional there.

And this morning‘s talent open with the NBA champions graphics. ScreenRecording_06-14-2026 11-46-47_1.mov

I wish Bill could've stayed through the Knicks win, one last happy NY story before the tragic circumstances forcing his retirement.

I know that Bill Ritter stepping down is the main issue of concern right now, but the Knicks just won the NBA Finals with a 94-90 win and Channel 7 is all hands on deck tonight with Sade Baderinwa and Mike Marza leading the coverage. I’m sure that this Knicks win will be putting a smile on Ritter’s face this weekend, especially with everything he is dealing with right now.

Very sad. My dad is suffering from dementia, so this announcement made me very sad.

Monday will be the first 6:00pm newscast on WABC-TV without a Bill sitting at the anchor desk permanently in nearly 56 years.

Bill Ritter was and still is the face of Eyewitness News in the 21st century and there is no questioning that. Downstate New York, northern New Jersey, and southwest Connecticut residents opened the century in 2000 with him, closed the first quarter with him, and have already started the second quarter with him. Two of my aunties have been living there in the New York area (Borough Park, Brooklyn and Copiague, Suffolk County) since the early 1990s, and they have watched Ritter on both the network and local levels through the good and bad times. A lot of people get triggered when he inserts his opinions into the newscast, and their feelings are valid, but a lot of long tenured anchors tend to go off script a bit anyway, so I don’t really make it bother me. I hope his situation improves soon because Alzheimer’s disease is very destructive to one’s health.

I just have to say its a bit heartbreaking and bittersweet to witness this moment. That moment when Bill Ritter decidedly left his post which such honor and dignity. Its a testament to who he is. He seems to be quite a remarkable human outside of the broadcasting space. He is well respected as we saw other outlets like WCBS, and others taking the time to mention this just is a testament to the amazing human he is. Bill has had some tough shoes to fill when his namesake, Bill Beutel left the job to him 27 years ago. He did just that to the best of his ability. He did what he set out to do 27 years ago and now it is time for him to pass this baton along to the new generation as we were eluding to. He gave it his all. Bill is a very special person for New Yorkers. His voice and his personality really was compelling. His reassurance with his warmth and personality, humility and dignity is not something we come across often in this industry and he had no shame in displaying that over the years. It made us feel like everything was going to be okay in the end with his delivery of the story. He is really pure and as wholesome as one can be and had such gravitas which I don't think anyone else has quite just yet its something that takes time to build and he certainly did that during his tenure at WABC. He truly upheld the high standard that his predecessor Bill Beutel (may he continue to rest in peace) passed on to Bill Ritter who he too now is passing on to the next. He's shown his vulnerability to us and is now seated with the other legends that we all knew and love. But for Bill its a little heartbreaking for me to see this because it kinda feels like he departed a little too soon. He certainly had a lot more to give and thats where it feels a bit sad for me. Over the years as a child and to this day as a near middle aged adult. Channel 7 was always on in the background, my parents would turn the channel it was a definitive part of my early life, and to this day I've always been a loyal viewer, the voices of these legends are etched in my memory and will always be forever. I've always knew that I was lucky to witness the professionalism this station continues to uphold the diversity and the professionalism of the individuals that work there it is a snapshot of what New York is at its best the diversity and the melting pot of different backgrounds coming together to deliver a product so profound which is why they continue to be the most watched station in the nation. WABC created a standard that help shaped the rest of this country and possibly the world. It brought me to these forums to have these compelling discussions about how these stations work behind the scenes and I really truly mean that. Bill got us through some of our darkest times the unforgettable 9/11 attacks that changed our world today, the Blackout of 2003, Hurricane Sandy, COVID, these are the stories that shaped our city he delivered them with such grace. It is truly an end of an era as we know it with his departure, sure we will see other anchors and other personalities mold in the coming years but we will never quite see anyone like him again, he will be extraordinarily missed. Im glad he's going to remain with us while he shares his journey with us and hopefully he gets some more years to spend with his family and his beloved people in his life. Thank You Bill!

Awww not Bill. I’m not from New York but remember him as a reporter and anchor at KTTV right here in his hometown of Los Angeles back in the 90s, a great reporter back then. Bill was unique in that he was an Angeleno working in New York. Oftentimes, it’s New Yorkers who move to LA, but Bill anchoring the news in New York, you wouldn’t think he was a guy from the laid back aura of Southern California. He demonstrated poise, compassion, and grit, requirements to succeed in the intense environment of New York City. Alzheimer’s is such an insidious disease, and for him to share this painful news and continue to work to report on it is a testament to his poise, compassion, and grit. I am hopeful his coverage gets national and global attention as he works persistently to raise awareness, empower people with this disease, their families, loved ones, caregivers, and communities working to find a better way. We have not seen the last of Bill.

Ironically he worked until his mind was going. My point was more that there comes a time when they appear to be past peak and the presentation isn’t what it was. At some point you run the risk of “see you Monday!” Becoming… uh… “Joe Anchor died in his sleep overnight” and it won’t even be all that incredible or surprising. The actuarial tables don’t care if he has ratings or not.

I see this said often. News anchoring is a non-physically taxing job. Anchoring at minimum requires reading off of a teleprompter from what a producer wrote, and occasionally turning a feature story. It's a job perfectly suited for the aging. Unless an elderly news anchor is drawing low ratings, their massive salary is taking away from other talent, or their demeanor on air becomes disheveled due to age, there's no good reason to shelf them because they're a senior citizen. moreover, if the news audience is older, wouldn't they like to see some of themselves reflected in who they watch? On top of that, people love familiar faces which is what contributes to news talent sticking around long. More over we don't know people's personal situation. When someone retires what do they have to do all day? It's working that keeps people's mind going sometimes. It's amazing how much we've talked about Bill Ritter in the recent weeks for the good and the bad. To have this news come out of today is just crazy and ironic. This is so major even WCBS is reporting about it.

The announcement was cut off on the stream. Here it is in it's entirety:

Chicago's Morning News almost sounds like the newscast WGN titled back in the day.

Ok now that’s a little much. Cue him live in studio saying he works for a different station or is in a different city or is a plumber or something. He should just gracefully be gone into the sunset. If they assigned another reporter to check in with him and did a series of reports in his honor that would make more sense.

Liz Cho is anchoring solo tonight by the way for the 6pm. A teary Liz acknowledged Bill's departure today and she emphasized on how he will move on to a new role of doing reporting on Alzheimers from this point on. So tough to watch. . At least he will still be there with them for the time being as long as he's able to.