Veteran ABC 7 anchor Bill Ritter is opening up about the frightening first symptoms that led to his early-stage Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and the emotional reality of stepping away from the anchor desk after more than two decades. Just days after announcing his retirement from WABC-TV, Bill Ritter revealed he initially dismissed troubling memory changes before ultimately realizing something more serious was going on.
Appearing on “Good Morning America” on Monday, Ritter shared that he first noticed symptoms nearly two years ago. “I realize I was forgetting people’s names and places,” Ritter recalled. “Didn’t know why this was happening.”
The longtime journalist said his wife, Kathleen, noticed changes as well, though he initially believed his demanding work schedule was likely to blame. In an effort to reduce stress and improve his sleep, Ritter began scaling back his responsibilities at ABC 7, first stepping away from the station’s 11 p.m. broadcast and later exiting the 5 p.m. newscast so he could focus solely on anchoring the 6 p.m. show.
“I was sleeping for the first time at night; for the first time in 25 years,” Ritter explained. “Finally getting a decent night sleep and it wasn’t getting better.”
That’s when Ritter decided it was time to seek answers. “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.”
Ritter Says He Was ‘Scared’ After Diagnosis
Ritter admitted his diagnosis immediately brought thoughts of his father, who died with Alzheimer’s disease in 1998. “My first reaction was, I thought about my dad,” Ritter said. “That was immediate. He just popped into my head.”
“And then a couple of seconds later, I was scared,” he continued. “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?’ ”
The Emmy-winning broadcaster said his focus quickly shifted to his family and how the disease would affect them moving forward. “I quickly moved into husband/dad place,” Ritter said. “Because Alzheimer’s really affects the family most. 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 added. “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.”
Bill Ritter Says Honesty Led To His Retirement Announcement
Ritter first revealed his diagnosis during Friday’s Eyewitness News at 6, announcing it would be his final night anchoring the program. “After a series of tests, my doctors have told me I have Alzheimer’s,” Ritter told viewers. “It’s ‘early stage’ Alzheimer’s, and they say the treatments I’m getting are keeping it at bay. For now. But there is no guarantee, because there’s no cure yet for Alzheimer’s. So, unless someone finds an amazing cure, and soon, tonight will be the last newscast I anchor.”
The longtime ABC 7 personality became emotional while explaining why he chose to be transparent with viewers. “My job as a journalist is to speak honestly to the public,” Ritter said. “Truth and facts is what we deal with. I figured I owed it to the viewers to be honest about this.”
Ritter Isn’t Leaving Journalism Behind
Although Ritter is stepping away from the anchor desk, he made clear he has no plans to retire completely. Instead, the veteran broadcaster will remain with ABC 7 in a new role focused on covering Alzheimer’s disease and other related illnesses, including the financial and emotional toll they take on families.
“I think we have an opportunity,” Ritter said while reflecting on the overwhelming response he received after sharing his diagnosis publicly. “There was such an outpouring this weekend of love and support. This disease, obviously, doesn’t care what your politics are because we’re all in this together.”
Bill Ritter Plans To Raise Alzheimer’s Awareness In New Role
Looking ahead, Ritter said he hopes to continue using journalism to bring awareness to the disease while helping others feel less alone.
“After this interview, I’m going to go to our Monday morning meeting at 9 a.m. … and then I’m going to go to my desk and have day one of the new job,” Ritter said. “And that will be to bring people into the tent, because I think that’s what we want.”