WABC - 7 Eyewitness News

[Vlad 407]

17 hours ago, MorningNews said:

It’s time for Bill Ritter to retire entirely from his anchoring duties. Or they need to strictly prohibit him from going off script when reading a story.

 

What happened? Did he say something out of script during a recent newscast or is this just a general observation?

[MorningNews 1715]

10 hours ago, Vlad said:

 

What happened? Did he say something out of script during a recent newscast or is this just a general observation?

Just generally his presentation has declined significantly in the last few years. He tries to improvise but just meanders until finally tossing to the reporter or their package. It’s clumsy and distracting.
 

 

[swaggyboi128 3]

3 hours ago, MorningNews said:

Just generally his presentation has declined significantly in the last few years. He tries to improvise but just meanders until finally tossing to the reporter or their package. It’s clumsy and distracting.
 

 

Can't say I've noticed this...I know he stopped caring about his appearance after COVID but I don't think his quality has much. Not to mention channel 7 doesn't seem like somewhere someone could improv into a package or a live report much, maybe into say weather or sports but that's supposed to be conversational. Everything's run pretty tight and if Bill really "meandered on" then it'd be fairly noticeable.

[Nynewsguy7 28]

It’s coming. By end of the year. The wheels are in motion. 

[ns8401 996]

My assumption is that like most people who don’t know when to ride off into the sunset there are signs he’s well past his expiration date.

[Vlad 407]

2 hours ago, Nynewsguy7 said:

It’s coming. By end of the year. The wheels are in motion. 

 

Aw, was hoping he'd stay till 80 like Chuck on WNBC,   I grew up with Bill, he is the face of WABC, when he retires it will be truly an end of an era.

Edited June 3 by Vlad

[MediaZone4K 2667]

On 6/3/2026 at 5:36 PM, Vlad said:

 

Aw, was hoping he'd stay till 80 like Chuck on WNBC,   I grew up with Bill, he is the face of WABC, when he retires it will be truly an end of an era.

I feel like Bill never reached that icon status of other news men like Bill Butel, Roger Grimsby, Jim Jensen, and Chuck Scarborough. I think part of it was because by the time Bill took the helm at WABC their anchors were treated as an ensemble with no one team standing out above the rest.

 

Another long time anchor I'd say that about is WNBC's David Ushery. 

Edited Monday at 12:12 AM by MediaZone4K

[NowBergen 928]

2 minutes ago, MediaZone4K said:

I feel like Bill never reached that icon status of other news men like Bill Butel, Roger Grimsby, Jim Jensen, and Chuck Scarborough. I think part of it was because by the time Bill took the helm at WABC their anchors were treated an ensemble with no one team standing out above the rest.

 

Another long time anchor I'd say that about is WNBC's David  Ushery. 

Exactly, when I think of generational anchors at WABC, it's Bill Beutel and Roger Grimsby.  Part of it is the original Eyewitness News format took off when they were brought in and assumed anchor duties. They changed the game for the station..  They are the Channel 7  (and NY broadcasting) icons. 

[Vlad 407]

 

18 hours ago, NowBergen said:

Exactly, when I think of generational anchors at WABC, it's Bill Beutel and Roger Grimsby.  Part of it is the original Eyewitness News format took off when they were brought in and assumed anchor duties. They changed the game for the station..  They are the Channel 7  (and NY broadcasting) icons. 

 

Absolutely 100%, Roger and Bill, they are legendary and they are the pioneers that defined and set the standard of that we know today so they will always have that distinction that nobody will ever be able to come close because they are associated with the creation of this highly successful format that Al Primo introduced and now used all across the country.

 

But, to elaborate more, Bill Ritter, Roz Abrams, Diana Williams, Ernie Anastos, etc. are a part of the immediate generation that followed on the footsteps of these greats and they were task with maintaining and upholding the standard that Bill and Roger created and to this day has worked. So now we are at a point in time where they are now passing the baton down to the newer Generations, (Generation X and Millennials) up into their place which is what I meant by end of an era. So just a sign of the times really. 

 

 

Edited June 4 by Vlad

[NYAZSporty 204]

For the NBA Finals, WABC milking it to the fullest they're showing the Knicks, having "Knicks Win" graphic in their news opens at 11 last night & this morning as well. 

 

[24994J 5890]

WTVD followed WABC's lead for tonight's Hurricanes win.
 

 

[NYAZSporty 204]

Sad day for WABC as Bill Ritter is expected to announce today he'll step down from the anchor chair at Eyewitness News citing health. Filled the big shoes of the legendary Bill Beutel (RIP) well & pretty much the last of the well-known guard amongst NYC news anchors as pretty much elsewhere on the dial, hardly much notoriety or gravitas amongst what's out there. All the best, Bill!! https://nypost.com/2026/06/12/media/abc-new-york-anchor-bill-ritter-to-retire-due-to-health-issue-sources/

[abc7 Man 73]

1 hour ago, NYAZSporty said:

Sad day for WABC as Bill Ritter is expected to announce today he'll step down from the anchor chair at Eyewitness News citing health. Filled the big shoes of the legendary Bill Beutel (RIP) well & pretty much the last of the well-known guard amongst NYC news anchors as pretty much elsewhere on the dial, hardly much notoriety or gravitas amongst what's out there. All the best, Bill!! https://nypost.com/2026/06/12/media/abc-new-york-anchor-bill-ritter-to-retire-due-to-health-issue-sources/

And this will also be reported on the national WNT this evening as well.

[GraphicsMan 345]

1 hour ago, NYAZSporty said:

Sad day for WABC as Bill Ritter is expected to announce today he'll step down from the anchor chair at Eyewitness News citing health. Filled the big shoes of the legendary Bill Beutel (RIP) well & pretty much the last of the well-known guard amongst NYC news anchors as pretty much elsewhere on the dial, hardly much notoriety or gravitas amongst what's out there. All the best, Bill!! https://nypost.com/2026/06/12/media/abc-new-york-anchor-bill-ritter-to-retire-due-to-health-issue-sources/

This very much reminds see I have some family in NYC I’d watch Bill all the time always engaged energetic newsman. I reminded me where I live locally where an anchor had a similar situation he stepped down and announced he had ALS. That station was WABC sister station WTVD it was another prominent anchor announcing he stepping down due to an essential slow death sentence. I wish bill very well is there a survival rate.

[Nynewsguy7 28]

On 6/3/2026 at 3:00 PM, Nynewsguy7 said:

It’s coming. By end of the year. The wheels are in motion. 

Sorry I couldn’t give an exact date last week - but the day has come. 

We all saw Bill fading - and we knew about the struggle - and those of us around long enough saw the similarities to Bill Beutel. 

Just as his predecessor - he is a journalistic giant.
 

Ritter may not be from the same era as the storied NY anchors - but he has earned the respect of his colleagues at WABC and the network. The truth is that he kept viewers watching when the opportunity was there for them to stray - and he has steered what is the channel 7 ship for 25 years. 

 

[GraphicsMan 345]

3 minutes ago, Nynewsguy7 said:

Sorry I couldn’t give an exact date last week - but the day has come. 

We all saw Bill fading - and we knew about the struggle - and those of us around long enough saw the similarities to Bill Beutel. 

Just as his predecessor - he is a journalistic giant.
 

Ritter may not be from the same era as the storied NY anchors - but he has earned the respect of his colleagues at WABC and the network. The truth is that he kept viewers watching when the opportunity was there for them to stray - and he has steered what is the channel 7 ship for 25 years. 

 

You know Bill Ritter may be the last anchor WABC has in a big caliber I haven’t seen Mike Marza enough to accurately say he’ll fill his shoes. But this is a great loss for them.

8 minutes ago, Nynewsguy7 said:

Sorry I couldn’t give an exact date last week - but the day has come. 

We all saw Bill fading - and we knew about the struggle - and those of us around long enough saw the similarities to Bill Beutel. 

Just as his predecessor - he is a journalistic giant.
 

Ritter may not be from the same era as the storied NY anchors - but he has earned the respect of his colleagues at WABC and the network. The truth is that he kept viewers watching when the opportunity was there for them to stray - and he has steered what is the channel 7 ship for 25 years. 

 

What’s your thoughts on Mike Marza?  Could he fill his shoes.

[RealNews18 271]

Wow this came sooner than expected. Bill was a household name and while I wasn’t his biggest fan this is still very sad. To compare the “weight” of his name to the earlier anchors I don’t think is fair because times were a little different then, like now you can’t really compare names tho those in the 90s. I wonder if this is why the station decided to starting putting “fill in” anchors at 6. I assume it will be David or Sandra to fill the spot. 

[WeatherandTraffic 65]

1 hour ago, NYAZSporty said:

Sad day for WABC as Bill Ritter is expected to announce today he'll step down from the anchor chair at Eyewitness News citing health. Filled the big shoes of the legendary Bill Beutel (RIP) well & pretty much the last of the well-known guard amongst NYC news anchors as pretty much elsewhere on the dial, hardly much notoriety or gravitas amongst what's out there. All the best, Bill!! https://nypost.com/2026/06/12/media/abc-new-york-anchor-bill-ritter-to-retire-due-to-health-issue-sources/

I saw parts of the 6pm newscast and Liz was on the verge of tears at the beginning of the newscast and right before the last commercial break. This must of happened this week and Bill wanted to say goodbye to the viewers while he still could. It make sense now that Liz has joined him on Up-close and Sandra has filled in for Liz at 6pm for the last few months. I wish Bill the best from Chicago and as he said, hopeful for a cure for Alzheimer's/dementia. 

[MorningNews 1715]

This is awful.
 

It had become abundantly clear that Bill’s performance was fading. He’s a legend, I remember enjoying his stint on GMA decades before I moved to NYC. His history of work speaks for itself and it’s admirable that he’s continuing his work at WABC to help the next generation. 
 

A lasting legacy in this great city. Thank you for everything Bill. 

[MD TV 396]

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

 

 

[MediaZone4K 2667]

This is just terrible. I grew up watching Bill. If Im correct it reminds me of Bill Beutel who had dimentia. My thoughts and prayers to Bill and his family.

[ns8401 996]

It’s unfortunate he’s not gonna get a few years with everything working the way it’s supposed to. 76 is a little old for him to have been still hanging around there if we’re all being honest. That seems to be happening in a lot of businesses these days. I say that as an outsider who watched similar things play out other places.

Edited 1 hour ago by ns8401

[MediaZone4K 2667]

36 minutes ago, ns8401 said:

It’s unfortunate he’s not gonna get a few years with everything working the way it’s supposed to. 76 is a little old for him to have been still hanging around there if we’re all being honest. That seems to be happening in a lot of businesses these days. I say that as an outsider who watched similar things play out other places.

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.

 

Moore 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.

 

Edited 1 hour ago by MediaZone4K

[ns8401 996]

57 minutes ago, MediaZone4K said:

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.

 

Moore 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.

 

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.