NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — Our colleague and close friend Bill Ritter was honored with a prestigious award at the New York Emmy Awards on Saturday.
The Governors’ Award honors Bill’s extraordinary career and enduring impact on journalism. Over 34 years at ABC News and WABC-TV, he has informed, inspired and connected with generations of viewers.
Since publicly sharing his Alzheimer’s diagnosis in June, Bill has used his “Living with Alzheimer’s” series to document his journey and raise awareness about the disease.
After accepting the Governor’s Award, Bill addressed a room filled with New York journalists, reflecting on his career, his diagnosis and the importance of continued awareness and support for those impacted by Alzheimer’s.
Bill recalled the pivotal moments that inspired him to become a journalist, calling out the audience’s younger journalists because they’re “all there for the future.”
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“The journalists reporting the truth and facts…it can’t happen any other way,” Bill said. “For all you younger journalists—they can’t change that. It can’t be because if it does, then everything changes.”
He emphasized reporting “the truth and facts no matter where they fall,” noting how this mantra drives Eyewitness News.
Focusing the end of his speech on Alzheimer’s, Bill spoke about finding a 2004 interview about his father, who also had Alzheimer’s disease. Bill reflected on one of the interview questions regarding public figures bringing attention to “the disease, the needs of the community for services and support.”
“My answer, for me, it’s a calling,” Bill said. “If I can help by talking about it, I will talk about it.”
You can watch Bill’s full acceptance speech in the video player above.
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