(WSYR-TV) — Syracuse native and award-winning anchor and managing editor of “ABC World News Tonight,” David Muir, will receive the 40th Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism.
Arizona State University announced Tuesday, Sept. 19 that Muir, who is also co-anchor of ABC’s “20/20,” will be recognized during the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism luncheon on Feb. 8, 2024, at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown.
Muir started his career in Journalism in Ithaca, N.Y., graduating from Ithaca College and working for WTVH-TV in Syracuse as an award-winning reporter and anchor.
Muir went on to work for ABC News where he conducted exclusive interviews with several world leaders, including the last three U.S. Presidents, and reported on major events and crises from across the world, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Ukraine, Tahrir Square, Mogadishu, Gaza, Guantanamo, Fukushima, Beirut, Amman and the Syrian border.
“David Muir is one of the most prolific journalists of this generation. He has made a global impact with his ability to hold powerful world leaders accountable and highlight issues that engage a worldwide audience,” said Cronkite School Dean Battinto L. Batts Jr. “His work exemplifies the core principles that Walter Cronkite valued, and we’re honored to present him with this award.”
The Cronkite Award — named after the late CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite — is awarded to prominent journalists and media executives to recognize the recipients’ accomplishments and leadership over the course of their careers.
The first award recipients were William Paley, founder of CBS, and Frank Stanton, longtime CBS president in 1984.
Other journalists who have been awarded a Cronkite Award include:
- Award-winning anchor and co-host Gayle King
- Weatherman and anchor Al Roker
- TV news anchors: Lester Holt, Robin Roberts, Anderson Cooper, Scott Pelley, Christiane Amanpour, Judy Woodruff and Gwen Ifill
- Sportscasters: Al Michaels and Bob Costas
- Newspaper journalists: Dean Baquet, Ben Bradlee, Helen Thomas and Bob Woodward
- Media executives: Katharine Graham, Al Neuharth and William Paley.
“Walter Cronkite famously guided this country through some of the most trying moments in modern U.S. history and he did so by trusting his own compass, his deep commitment to journalism and the truth, and his willingness, in the darkest of times, to share his own humanity,” Muir said. “To be honored in Cronkite’s name, is not only deeply humbling, it’s a call for us all to live up to those standards especially when they’re needed most.”
In the past year, Muir traveled to Kyiv and was the first American anchor to interview Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the beginning of Ukraine’s counter-offensive after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
To read more abour Muir’s work, visit Arizona State University’s website.
Those interested in attending to Cronkite Award luncheon can register online.
