How Barbara Walters Inspired So Many Women—Including Oprah
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On December 30, 2022, Barbara Walters passed away at the age of 93. A trailblazing television journalist, Walters began her career as a writer and researcher at NBC's Today in 1961. From there, she moved up the ranks and eventually made history by becoming Today's first female co-host. Later, in 1976, she went on to co-anchor the ABC Evening News. Three years after that, she joined 20/20.
Over the course of her career, Walters sat down with world leaders, probed the inner lives of presidents, interrogated film stars, excavated the unguarded truth out of royalty, and inspired generations of female TV journalists, including a young Oprah Winfrey.
When Oprah interviewed Walters for a 2004 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine, she shared, "When I was 17, I entered the local Miss Fire Prevention Contest. I knew the judges would ask what I hoped to do with my life, and I'd planned to say, 'I want to become a fourth-grade teacher.' But I'd seen the Today show that morning, and it popped into my head to say my goal was to be a TV journalist," wrote Oprah. "'What kind of journalist?' one of the judges pressed. I've never forgotten my answer: 'I want to be like Barbara Walters.'"
Walters was candid about the difficulties she faced in an industry that, at the time, was dominated by men. But just because she worked hard to be seen as an equal doesn't mean she set out to be a trailblazer. "I didn't deliberately pave the way. I wasn't Gloria Steinem. When I look back at the kinds of things I wasn't allowed to do when I began as a writer, even on the Today show around 1960—I could write only the so-called female pieces. The big breakthrough was when I could write for men," she shared with Oprah during their 2004 O, The Oprah Magazine interview. "I remember when I was there with an anchorman named Frank McGee. He had to ask three hard-news questions before I could ask one."
As more and more female journalists began earning top spots at major networks, some tabloids tried to pit Walters against these other women—something that frustrated Walters. "There's been a rumor rattling around for years, and it drives Diane Sawyer and me crazy," she told Oprah in 2004. "I just want to say that I have such admiration for Diane. We feel very good about each other. Always have. We can laugh together. This whole business that we've always been out to kill each other is such an old story. We're sick of it. If Ted Koppel and Peter Jennings competed, we'd never hear about it. But we still have these clichés."
Looking back at Walters' iconic career, there are almost too many successes to count. After becoming the first female co-host on Today, Walters moved from NBC to ABC in 1976 for an unprecedented $1 million salary. She earned a number of accolades over the course of her career, too—including three Emmy Awards, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and numerous Lifetime Achievement Awards.
While her wins were meaningful, Walters told Oprah that her failures were just as important. "It's good to fail sometimes. When you fail, you have to prove yourself," Walters said in 2004. "That's often the best thing that can happen, because then you're sure your success isn't just luck."
Aside from her impressive work, Walters was a devoted mother to her daughter, Jacqueline. Walters told Oprah that the one thing she knew for sure was that having purpose and caring deeply for others matters. "You've got to have someone you love—and not necessarily that you have to have someone who loves you. You've got to have a reason to get up in the morning. That doesn't mean you have to have a career. But you must have something you really care about," she said in 2004. "And you have to have friends. I don't want to do all the clichés for you, but the older I get, the more I think you must be kind."
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