Veteran ABC7 Anchor Bill Ritter talks about the frightening early symptoms that led to his early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease and the emotional reality of walking away from the anchor’s desk after more than two decades. Just days after announcing his retirement from WABC-TV, Bill Ritter revealed that he initially dismissed troubling memory changes before finally realizing something more serious was going on.
Bill Ritter Reveals Early Signs of Alzheimer’s Diagnosis
Appearing Monday on “Good Morning America,” Ritter said he first noticed his symptoms nearly two years ago. “I realized I was forgetting people’s names and places,” Ritter recalls. “I didn’t know why this was happening.”
The longtime journalist said his wife, Kathleen, also noticed changes, although he initially thought her demanding work schedule was probably to blame. In an effort to reduce his stress and improve his sleep, Ritter began reducing his responsibilities at ABC 7, first stepping away from the station’s 11 p.m. show and then leaving the 5 p.m. newscast so he could focus solely on hosting the 6 p.m. show.
“I slept for the first time at night; for the first time in 25 years,” Ritter said. “Finally I got a good night’s sleep and it wasn’t getting any better.”
That’s when Ritter decided it was time to look for answers. “We said, ‘I need to get tested,’” he recalls. “And that was a really big thing. A lot of people say, ‘I’m fine, don’t worry about that, everything will be fine.’ No, you have to go.
Ritter says he was ‘scared’ after diagnosis
Ritter admitted that his diagnosis immediately made him think of his father, who died of Alzheimer’s disease in 1998. “My first reaction was to think of my father,” Ritter said. “It was immediate. It just came to me.”
“And then a few seconds later, I got scared,” he continued. “I don’t mind saying that. It was scary. Because it was like, ‘Wait a minute, I’m supposed to do this. What’s going on here?’ »
The Emmy Award-winning broadcaster said his focus quickly shifted to his family and how the disease would affect them in the future. “I quickly moved in with my husband/father,” Ritter said. “Because Alzheimer’s affects the family the most. As a father and husband, I thought, ‘I have to deal with this. This is my family. And that’s what really worries me.”
“They are the ones who are really the most difficult in this area,” he added. “My kids say, ‘Dad, you’re so brave about this.’ And it’s not me who’s brave. It’s my children and my wife who are the bravest. That’s really the real case here.
Bill Ritter says honesty led to retirement announcement
Ritter first revealed his diagnosis on Friday’s Eyewitness News at 6 p.m., announcing it would be his last night hosting the program. “After a series of tests, my doctors told me I had Alzheimer’s disease,” 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’s no guarantee, because there’s no cure for Alzheimer’s yet. So unless someone finds an amazing cure, and soon, tonight will be the last newscast I anchor.
The longtime ABC 7 personality got 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. “We’re dealing with truth and facts. I thought I owed it to the viewers to be honest about that.”
Ritter does not give up journalism
Although Ritter is stepping down as anchor, he has made it clear that 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 and other related illnesses, including the financial and emotional burden they place on families.
“I think we have an opportunity,” Ritter said while reflecting on the overwhelming response he received after publicly sharing his diagnosis. “There was such an outpouring of love and support this weekend. This disease, obviously, doesn’t care about your politics, because we’re all in this together.”
Bill Ritter plans to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease in new role
Looking ahead, Ritter said he hopes to continue using journalism to raise awareness about 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. … then I’ll go to my office and have the first day of my new job,” Ritter said. “And it will be to get people under the tent, because I think that’s what we want.”
