Diane Sawyer facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Diane Sawyer
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Sawyer in 2014
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Lila Diane Sawyer
December 22, 1945 Glasgow, Kentucky, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Wellesley College (BA) |
| Occupation | Television journalist |
| Years active | 1962–present |
| Known for | Broadcast anchor of Good Morning America and ABC World News Tonight |
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Lila Diane Sawyer (born December 22, 1945) is a famous American television journalist. She is known for hosting major news shows on two big networks, ABC News and CBS News. At ABC, she anchored ABC World News Tonight, Good Morning America, 20/20, and Primetime. Before that, at CBS News, she hosted CBS Morning and was the first woman reporter on 60 Minutes. Earlier in her career, she even worked for U.S. President Richard Nixon at the White House. Today, she still works for ABC News, making documentaries and special interviews.
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Growing Up
Diane Sawyer was born in Glasgow, Kentucky. Her mom, Jean, was an elementary school teacher, and her dad, Erbon "Tom" Sawyer, was a county judge. She has an older sister named Linda. Soon after Diane was born, her family moved to Louisville. Her father became a well-known politician and community leader there. A park in Louisville, E. P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park, is named after him.
Diane went to Seneca High School in Louisville. She was the editor of her school yearbook and enjoyed many creative activities. In 1963, during her last year of high school, she won the annual America's Junior Miss scholarship contest, representing Kentucky. She impressed the judges with her calm manner in the final interview and an essay she wrote. From 1963 to 1965, Diane traveled around the country as America's Junior Miss. This experience helped her learn to think quickly and stay calm under pressure. After high school, Diane went to Wellesley College and graduated in 1967.
Her Career in Journalism
Right after college, Diane went back to Kentucky. She worked as a weather reporter for WLKY-TV in Louisville. She found the weather news a bit boring, so she sometimes added quotes to make it more interesting! Later, she became a general reporter, but she still wanted more.
In 1970, Diane moved to Washington, D.C.. She couldn't find a job in TV news right away, so she looked for work in government offices. She became an assistant to Jerry Warren, who was the White House deputy press secretary. Diane started by writing press releases and soon began helping to write some of President Richard Nixon's public speeches. She eventually became a staff assistant for President Nixon.
Diane stayed with President Nixon through the Watergate scandal and his resignation in 1974. She then helped him write his book, RN: The Memoirs of Richard Nixon, which came out in 1978. She also helped Nixon get ready for his famous TV interviews with journalist David Frost in 1977.
When Diane returned to Washington, D.C., in 1978, she joined CBS News as a reporter. She quickly moved up and became a political reporter in 1980. She appeared on the weekday show Morning with Charles Kuralt. In 1981, she became a co-anchor for the morning news show. Her arrival helped the show's ratings, but this didn't last. In 1984, Diane asked to be given a different role.
In 1984, she made history by becoming the first female reporter on 60 Minutes. This is a very well-known investigative TV news show on CBS.
In 1989, Diane moved to ABC News. She became a co-anchor for the news show Primetime Live with Sam Donaldson. They worked together on Primetime Live until 1998. Then, they moved to another show called 20/20 Wednesday until 2000. Diane also co-anchored a Sunday version of 20/20 with Barbara Walters for a year.
On January 18, 1999, Diane returned to morning news as a co-anchor for Good Morning America with Charles Gibson. She was only supposed to be there temporarily, but she was so successful that she stayed for almost eleven years! Her work helped Good Morning America get much closer in ratings to its main competitor, Today.
In 2000, Diane also returned as a co-anchor for Primetime, which was then called Primetime Thursday. She was the first person to tell Good Morning America viewers that the first plane had crashed into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
On September 2, 2009, it was announced that Diane would take over from Charles Gibson as the anchor of ABC World News. She left Good Morning America on December 11, 2009, and started anchoring ABC World News on December 21, 2009. For over a year (2010–2011), two of the three main network news anchors on TV were women, including Diane Sawyer and Katie Couric at CBS.
Diane was the main anchor for ABC's top news show, World News, and led the network's coverage of breaking news, elections, and special events until 2014. On June 25, 2014, it was announced that she would step down from anchoring ABC World News in September 2014. She continued to work for ABC News, focusing on creating special programs and conducting important interviews.
Career Highlights
- 1967–1970: News and weather reporter for WLKY-TV in Louisville, Kentucky.
- 1970–1974: White House press assistant.
- 1974–1978: Assistant to President Richard Nixon for his memoirs.
- 1978–1981: Reporter and correspondent for CBS News.
- 1981–1984: Co-anchor of Morning with Charles Kuralt/The CBS Morning News.
- 1984–1989: Reporter for 60 Minutes.
- 1989–1998: Co-anchor of Primetime Live.
- 1998–present: Reporter for 20/20.
- 1999–2009: Co-anchor of Good Morning America.
- 2000–2006: Co-anchor of Primetime.
- 2009–2014: Anchor of ABC World News.
- 2014–present: Special contributor for ABC News.
Awards and Recognition
Diane Sawyer has received many awards for her excellent work in journalism:
- 1987: Golden Plate Award from the American Academy of Achievement.
- 1997: Inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.
- 2000: Daytime Emmy Award for morning programming.
- 2001: Named one of the thirty most powerful women in America by Ladies' Home Journal.
- Since 2004: Often included in Forbes Magazine's List of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women.
- 2007: Emmy Award for outstanding news and documentary program.
- 2009: Peabody Award for her work on "A Hidden America: Children of the Mountains."
- 2010: Won the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism.
- 2012: Received an honorary degree from Brown University.
- 2019: Named a Disney Legend, an award for those who have made great contributions to the legacy of Walt Disney.
Personal Life
On April 29, 1988, Diane Sawyer married Mike Nichols, a famous film and theater director. Mike Nichols passed away on November 19, 2014.
See also
In Spanish: Diane Sawyer para niños
- New Yorkers in journalism
