20/20
Encyclopedia
20/20 is an American
"television newsmagazine", (similar in depth to a "print newsmagazine
"), broadcast on ABC
since June 6, 1978. Created by ABC News
executive Roone Arledge
, the show was designed similarly to CBS
's 60 Minutes
but focuses more on human interest stories than international and political subjects. The program's name derives from the "20/20" measurement of visual acuity
. On March 3, 1999, Monica Lewinsky was interviewed by Barbara Walters
on ABC's 20/20; the program was watched by 70 million Americans, which ABC said was a record for a news show.
, the renowned editor of Esquire
magazine who also served as senior producer, and famed Time
art critic Robert Hughes
. The debut received largely harsh reviews; The New York Times
described it as "dizzingly absurd" and the Washington Post denounced it as "the trashiest stab at candycane journalism yet." In his autobiography Roone: A Memoir, Roone Arledge recalled that probably the most embarrassing part of that initial program was the Claymation segments featuring caricatures representing then-President Jimmy Carter
(singing "Georgia on My Mind
") and Walter Cronkite
(closing the show intoning, "That's the way it was"). As a result of the scathing reviews, serious and drastic changes were made immediately: Hayes and Hughes were fired (as was original executive producer Bob Shanks), and a then semi-retired Hugh Downs
was recruited to take on the role of sole host on the following week's program.
Also in the premiere telecast of 20/20, the opening sequence consisted of a pair of eyeglasses, whose lenses showed colored bars, which are often seen in the SMPTE test pattern
(always used when TV stations were off the air). The eyeglasses were keyed over a yellow background, and rotated to its rear position to reveal the 20/20 studio.
Under Downs as host, 20/20 changed into a more standard yet unique newsmagazine and received kinder reviews. The program originally was seen as a summer replacement series, after which during the 1978–1979 season it was presented on a once-a-month basis before acquiring a regular Thursday 10:00 p.m. slot beginning May 31, 1979. Ratings were generally very good during the summertime during its eight years on Thursday nights despite competition from Knots Landing
on CBS and Hill Street Blues
on NBC.
Barbara Walters
joined the cast in 1979 as something less than a co-anchor and soon became a regular special contributor in the fall of 1981. In 1984 she became Hugh Downs' equal, thus reuniting a duo which had already anchored together on NBC
's Today from 1964 to 1971. The team would remain together on-air for the next 15 years.
In the autumn of 1987, 20/20 was moved to Fridays at 10:00 p.m., where by the 1991–1992 season it ranked 21st in the annual ratings as a result. It aired in that same slot until the fall of 2001, when the series was briefly replaced by Once and Again
, only to return again four months later. It has basically retained that slot ever since. While the series briefly moved to the 8:00 p.m. timeslot on October 12, 2007, it reverted to its usual time two weeks later.
In 1997, a second weekly edition of "20/20" was launched. For a time from 1998–2000, ABC News
combined 20/20 and Primetime Live to compete with Dateline NBC
. The editions were called 20/20 Monday, 20/20 Wednesday, 20/20 Thursday, 20/20 Friday, 20/20 Sunday, and finally 20/20 Downtown. In 2000 ABC News returned the news magazines to the original 20/20, reinstating Primetime Thursday, and spinning off 20/20 Downtown as simply Downtown. By early 2002, the show was airing again in only its original Friday timeslot.
Downs retired in 1999 and Walters became the solo news anchor until 2002 when John Miller
was hired to be a permanent co-host of the series. But he never got very comfortable in the anchor chair and a year later he jumped at the chance to rejoin law enforcement. For a few months in early 2003 Barbara Walters anchored solo again. However, in May 2003, John Stossel
, the man behind the controversial, though popular, "Give Me a Break" segments, was named co-anchor of 20/20. As one of the first veteran anchors, Barbara Walters chose to go into semi-retirement as a broadcast journalist in 2004. However, she remained as a frequent contributor to the show. ABC News reporter Elizabeth Vargas
was promoted to the co-anchor spot. In September 2009, before the start of its new season, John Stossel announced he would leave the program after 28 years to pursue a new weekly show on the Fox Business Channel. Barbara Walters and Diane Sawyer
also contribute reports. On December 10, 2009, it was announced that Good Morning America
news anchor Chris Cuomo was promoted to co-host 20/20 alongside Elizabeth Vargas
.
Children”, "Romance Morphs Into Horror Story", “Waiting on the World to Change”—a year in the lives of children in one of the poorest cities in America—“Scared Stiff: Worried in America”, “Caught on Tape”—on how the proliferation of cameras in our society has impacted our lives—“Seeing and Believing: The Power of Faith”, “Privilege in America: Who’s Shutting You Out”, “Sweet Revenge”, a report on the differences between female and male brains, and "When Is Young Too Young?" which reports on teenagers and kids that have adult traits, like an 11 year old girl who is a race car driver or a 10 year old boy who is a matador and includes the conversations with the mother of pilot trainee Jessica Dubroff who at the age of seven died when the plane she was flying crashed not long after take off.
Drama High: The Making of a High School Musical, a two hour special edition of 20/20, aired on December 15, 2008. With over three hundred hours of footage, Drama High depicts the minefields that students must navigate both on stage and off when trying out for a high school musical. Who will make the cast? Who has a future in performing and who doesn't? Rivalries heat up between peers while egos hit rock bottom and all time highs. The program documents the journey of students at Westfield High, a predominantly white school in Virginia that is staging The Wiz
—the black musical version of The Wizard of Oz. Over 100 kids audition but only four will win the chance to star the performance. This program was a departure from 20/20s usual format in that it features no correspondent or narration, instead the story is told through the students' intimate video diaries.
In August 2006 a two hour special entitled Last Days on Earth
aired. It discussed seven ways in which life on Earth could end, and has since aired on the History Channel.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
"television newsmagazine", (similar in depth to a "print newsmagazine
Newsmagazine
A news magazine is a typed, printed, and published piece of paper, magazine or a radio or television program, usually weekly, featuring articles or segments on current events...
"), broadcast on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
since June 6, 1978. Created by ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
executive Roone Arledge
Roone Arledge
Roone Pickney Arledge, Jr. was an American sports broadcasting pioneer who was chairman of ABC News from 1977 until several years before his death, and a key part of the company's rise to competition with the two other main television networks, NBC and CBS, in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s.-Early...
, the show was designed similarly to CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's 60 Minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
but focuses more on human interest stories than international and political subjects. The program's name derives from the "20/20" measurement of visual acuity
Visual acuity
Visual acuity is acuteness or clearness of vision, which is dependent on the sharpness of the retinal focus within the eye and the sensitivity of the interpretative faculty of the brain....
. On March 3, 1999, Monica Lewinsky was interviewed by Barbara Walters
Barbara Walters
Barbara Jill Walters is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows , the television newsmagazine , former co-anchor of the ABC Evening News, and current contributor to ABC News.Walters was first known as a popular TV morning news...
on ABC's 20/20; the program was watched by 70 million Americans, which ABC said was a record for a news show.
History
The show's anchors on the premiere telecast were Harold HayesHarold Hayes
Harold Thomas Pace Hayes was a main architect of the New Journalism movement.-Biography:He was born on April 18, 1926 in North Carolina.He was an editor of Esquire magazine from 1963 to 1973...
, the renowned editor of Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
magazine who also served as senior producer, and famed Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
art critic Robert Hughes
Robert Hughes (critic)
Robert Studley Forrest Hughes, AO is an Australian-born art critic, writer and television documentary maker who has resided in New York since 1970.-Early life:...
. The debut received largely harsh reviews; The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
described it as "dizzingly absurd" and the Washington Post denounced it as "the trashiest stab at candycane journalism yet." In his autobiography Roone: A Memoir, Roone Arledge recalled that probably the most embarrassing part of that initial program was the Claymation segments featuring caricatures representing then-President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
(singing "Georgia on My Mind
Georgia on My Mind
"Georgia on My Mind" is a song written in 1930 by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell . It is the official state song of the U.S. state of Georgia. Gorrell wrote the lyrics for Hoagy's sister, Georgia Carmichael. However, the lyrics of the song are ambiguous enough to refer either to the state or...
") and Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
(closing the show intoning, "That's the way it was"). As a result of the scathing reviews, serious and drastic changes were made immediately: Hayes and Hughes were fired (as was original executive producer Bob Shanks), and a then semi-retired Hugh Downs
Hugh Downs
Hugh Malcolm Downs is a long time American broadcaster, television host, news anchor, TV producer, author, game show host, and music composer; and is perhaps best known for his role as co-host the NBC News program Today from 1962 to 1971, host of the Concentration game show from 1958 to 1969, and...
was recruited to take on the role of sole host on the following week's program.
Also in the premiere telecast of 20/20, the opening sequence consisted of a pair of eyeglasses, whose lenses showed colored bars, which are often seen in the SMPTE test pattern
SMPTE color bars
The SMPTE color bars are a type of television test pattern, and is most commonly used in countries where the NTSC video standard is dominant, such as those in North America. The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers refers to this test pattern as Engineering Guideline EG 1-1990...
(always used when TV stations were off the air). The eyeglasses were keyed over a yellow background, and rotated to its rear position to reveal the 20/20 studio.
Under Downs as host, 20/20 changed into a more standard yet unique newsmagazine and received kinder reviews. The program originally was seen as a summer replacement series, after which during the 1978–1979 season it was presented on a once-a-month basis before acquiring a regular Thursday 10:00 p.m. slot beginning May 31, 1979. Ratings were generally very good during the summertime during its eight years on Thursday nights despite competition from Knots Landing
Knots Landing
Knots Landing is an American primetime television soap opera that aired from December 27, 1979 to May 13, 1993 on CBS. Set in a fictitious coastal suburb of Los Angeles in California, the show centered on the lives of four married couples living in a cul-de-sac, Seaview Circle...
on CBS and Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
on NBC.
Barbara Walters
Barbara Walters
Barbara Jill Walters is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows , the television newsmagazine , former co-anchor of the ABC Evening News, and current contributor to ABC News.Walters was first known as a popular TV morning news...
joined the cast in 1979 as something less than a co-anchor and soon became a regular special contributor in the fall of 1981. In 1984 she became Hugh Downs' equal, thus reuniting a duo which had already anchored together on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Today from 1964 to 1971. The team would remain together on-air for the next 15 years.
In the autumn of 1987, 20/20 was moved to Fridays at 10:00 p.m., where by the 1991–1992 season it ranked 21st in the annual ratings as a result. It aired in that same slot until the fall of 2001, when the series was briefly replaced by Once and Again
Once and Again
Once and Again is an American television series that aired on ABC from September 21, 1999 to April 15, 2002. It depicts the family of a single mother and her romance with a single father...
, only to return again four months later. It has basically retained that slot ever since. While the series briefly moved to the 8:00 p.m. timeslot on October 12, 2007, it reverted to its usual time two weeks later.
In 1997, a second weekly edition of "20/20" was launched. For a time from 1998–2000, ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
combined 20/20 and Primetime Live to compete with Dateline NBC
Dateline NBC
Dateline NBC, or Dateline, is a U.S. weekly television newsmagazine broadcast by NBC. It previously was NBC's flagship news magazine, but now focuses on true crime stories. It airs Friday at 9 p.m. EST and after football season on Sunday at 7 p.m. EST.-History:Dateline is historically notable for...
. The editions were called 20/20 Monday, 20/20 Wednesday, 20/20 Thursday, 20/20 Friday, 20/20 Sunday, and finally 20/20 Downtown. In 2000 ABC News returned the news magazines to the original 20/20, reinstating Primetime Thursday, and spinning off 20/20 Downtown as simply Downtown. By early 2002, the show was airing again in only its original Friday timeslot.
Downs retired in 1999 and Walters became the solo news anchor until 2002 when John Miller
John Miller (journalist)
John Miller is an American journalist and a former government official.He is the former Associate Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Analytic Transformation and Technology...
was hired to be a permanent co-host of the series. But he never got very comfortable in the anchor chair and a year later he jumped at the chance to rejoin law enforcement. For a few months in early 2003 Barbara Walters anchored solo again. However, in May 2003, John Stossel
John Stossel
John F. Stossel is an American consumer reporter, investigative journalist, author and libertarian columnist. In October 2009 Stossel left his long time home on ABC News to join the Fox Business Channel and Fox News Channel, both owned and operated by News Corp...
, the man behind the controversial, though popular, "Give Me a Break" segments, was named co-anchor of 20/20. As one of the first veteran anchors, Barbara Walters chose to go into semi-retirement as a broadcast journalist in 2004. However, she remained as a frequent contributor to the show. ABC News reporter Elizabeth Vargas
Elizabeth Vargas
Elizabeth Vargas is an American television journalist who is anchor of ABC's television newsmagazine 20/20 and ABC News Specials. She was previously an anchor of World News Tonight.-Early years:...
was promoted to the co-anchor spot. In September 2009, before the start of its new season, John Stossel announced he would leave the program after 28 years to pursue a new weekly show on the Fox Business Channel. Barbara Walters and Diane Sawyer
Diane Sawyer
Lila Diane Sawyer is the current anchor of ABC News' flagship program, ABC World News. Previously, Sawyer had been co-anchor of ABC Newss morning news program, Good Morning America ....
also contribute reports. On December 10, 2009, it was announced that Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
news anchor Chris Cuomo was promoted to co-host 20/20 alongside Elizabeth Vargas
Elizabeth Vargas
Elizabeth Vargas is an American television journalist who is anchor of ABC's television newsmagazine 20/20 and ABC News Specials. She was previously an anchor of World News Tonight.-Early years:...
.
20/20 Downtown, later "Downtown" and "Primetime Monday"
Unlike most other newsmagazine, Downtown was never carried by any big name anchor. An ensemble team of anchors fronted the broadcast, which was aimed at attracting younger viewers. The anchor/reporting duties were filled by the team of Elizabeth Vargas, Cynthia McFadden, Chris Cuomo, Jay Schadler and John Quiñones. It was canceled in 2002. In 2003, the program returned for one season as Primetime Monday with the same anchors and format.One hour specials
20/20 has done unique hour-long reports that include “My Secret Self: A Story of TransgenderTransgender
Transgender is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies to vary from culturally conventional gender roles....
Children”, "Romance Morphs Into Horror Story", “Waiting on the World to Change”—a year in the lives of children in one of the poorest cities in America—“Scared Stiff: Worried in America”, “Caught on Tape”—on how the proliferation of cameras in our society has impacted our lives—“Seeing and Believing: The Power of Faith”, “Privilege in America: Who’s Shutting You Out”, “Sweet Revenge”, a report on the differences between female and male brains, and "When Is Young Too Young?" which reports on teenagers and kids that have adult traits, like an 11 year old girl who is a race car driver or a 10 year old boy who is a matador and includes the conversations with the mother of pilot trainee Jessica Dubroff who at the age of seven died when the plane she was flying crashed not long after take off.
Drama High: The Making of a High School Musical, a two hour special edition of 20/20, aired on December 15, 2008. With over three hundred hours of footage, Drama High depicts the minefields that students must navigate both on stage and off when trying out for a high school musical. Who will make the cast? Who has a future in performing and who doesn't? Rivalries heat up between peers while egos hit rock bottom and all time highs. The program documents the journey of students at Westfield High, a predominantly white school in Virginia that is staging The Wiz
The Wiz
The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in the context of African American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974 at the Morris A...
—the black musical version of The Wizard of Oz. Over 100 kids audition but only four will win the chance to star the performance. This program was a departure from 20/20s usual format in that it features no correspondent or narration, instead the story is told through the students' intimate video diaries.
In August 2006 a two hour special entitled Last Days on Earth
Last Days on Earth
The Last Days on Earth is a 20/20 science special which aired on ABC in August 2006 and has been aired on The History Channel. The show counts down the seven most likely ways in which the world could end, including gamma ray bursts, machine rule, asteroids, super volcanoes, nuclear war, pandemic...
aired. It discussed seven ways in which life on Earth could end, and has since aired on the History Channel.
Music theme
The distinctive theme music to 20/20 was written by Robert Arnold Israel and based upon ABC's World News Tonight theme written by Lillian Scheinert. The original theme was revamped around 1993, and was subsequently replaced in 1999 along with the 20/20 logo and the anchors' desk. Finally the orchestral 20/20 theme was updated in 2001, along with a few modifications in 2003 and 2005. In 2010 the theme was once again revamped along with new graphics to reflect the news magazine's new darker tone - this new theme was written by DreamArtists Studios.Slogans
In the early 1990s; the program used the tagline in the introduction; "Around The World And Into Your Home; The Stories That Touch Your Life"Past anchors
- Harold HayesHarold HayesHarold Thomas Pace Hayes was a main architect of the New Journalism movement.-Biography:He was born on April 18, 1926 in North Carolina.He was an editor of Esquire magazine from 1963 to 1973...
(1978) - Robert HughesRobert Hughes (critic)Robert Studley Forrest Hughes, AO is an Australian-born art critic, writer and television documentary maker who has resided in New York since 1970.-Early life:...
(1978) - Hugh DownsHugh DownsHugh Malcolm Downs is a long time American broadcaster, television host, news anchor, TV producer, author, game show host, and music composer; and is perhaps best known for his role as co-host the NBC News program Today from 1962 to 1971, host of the Concentration game show from 1958 to 1969, and...
(1978–1999) - Barbara WaltersBarbara WaltersBarbara Jill Walters is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows , the television newsmagazine , former co-anchor of the ABC Evening News, and current contributor to ABC News.Walters was first known as a popular TV morning news...
(1979–2004) - Diane SawyerDiane SawyerLila Diane Sawyer is the current anchor of ABC News' flagship program, ABC World News. Previously, Sawyer had been co-anchor of ABC Newss morning news program, Good Morning America ....
(1998–2000) - Charles GibsonCharles GibsonCharles deWolf "Charlie" Gibson is a former American broadcast television anchor and journalist. He was a host of Good Morning America from 1987 to 1998 and 1999 to 2006 and anchor of World News with Charles Gibson from 2006 to 2009....
(1998–2000) - Sam DonaldsonSam DonaldsonSamuel Andrew "Sam" Donaldson, Jr. is a reporter and news anchor, serving with ABC News from 1967 to the present, best known as the network's White House Correspondent and as a panelist and later co-anchor of the network's Sunday Program "This Week."-Early life and career:Donaldson was born in El...
(1998–2000) - Connie ChungConnie ChungConnie Chung, full name: Constance Yu-Hwa Chung Povich is an American journalist who has been an anchor and reporter for the U.S. television news networks NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, and MSNBC. Some of her more famous interview subjects include Claus von Bülow and U.S...
(1998–2002) - Jack FordJack Ford (news anchor)Jack Ford is an American television news personality specializing in legal commentary who has spent over two decades in front of the TV camera as host and presenter of numerous information and entertainment programs.-Early life:...
(2000–2001) - John MillerJohn Miller (journalist)John Miller is an American journalist and a former government official.He is the former Associate Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Analytic Transformation and Technology...
(2002–2003) - John StosselJohn StosselJohn F. Stossel is an American consumer reporter, investigative journalist, author and libertarian columnist. In October 2009 Stossel left his long time home on ABC News to join the Fox Business Channel and Fox News Channel, both owned and operated by News Corp...
(2003–2009)
Current and past correspondents
- Martin BashirMartin BashirMartin Bashir is a British journalist and media personality, currently with NBC News as a contributor for its Dateline program, and an afternoon anchor for MSNBC, hosting Martin Bashir...
- Sylvia Chase
- Catherine CrierCatherine CrierCatherine Jean Crier is an American television personality and a former district court judge.-Life and career:Crier was born in Dallas, Texas in 1954 to William and Ann Crier and has two sisters. Crier graduated from Richardson High School and University of Texas at Austin, from which she earned...
- Arnold DiazArnold DíazArnold Diaz is a reporter and a consumer investigator. He investigates for WNYW in New York City for the Shame Shame Shame segments, which are similar to the Shame On You segments he did during his 20+ years at WCBS-TV....
- Thomas HovingThomas HovingThomas Pearsall Field Hoving was an American museum executive and consultant and the former director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.-Biography:...
- Tom JarrielTom JarrielThomas Edwin "Tom" Jarriel is an American television news reporter who has worked for the ABC network since the 1960s.Jarriel's parents were the late William Lester Jarriel, Sr., and Ella Ruth Jarriel . The Jarriels were living in LaGrange in Troup County in far western Georgia, where on May 17,...
- Dr. Tim Johnson
- Peter LancePeter LancePeter Lance is an American journalist who is a multiple Emmy Award winner.-9/11:Peter Lance is the author of 1000 Years for Revenge which is a broad survey of Al-Qaida operations in the US prior to 9/11 and Cover Up: What the Government Is Still Hiding About the War on Terror...
- Dave MarashDave MarashDavid Marash, known as Dave Marash is an American television journalist.Marash garnered considerable attention when he joined Al Jazeera English in January 2006 as the network's Washington, D.C. anchor, thus becoming the de facto American face of the new English language station. Two years later,...
- Cynthia McFaddenCynthia McFaddenCynthia McFadden is an anchor and correspondent for ABC News who currently co-anchors Nightline and Primetime.-Education:...
- Lisa McReeLisa McReeLisa McRee is an American television journalist and former news anchor, born in Fort Worth, Texas.She was a news anchor for WFAA-TV in Dallas, Texas, from 1989 to 1991 before becoming one of the original anchors, along with Aaron Brown, of ABC News' World News Now when the show launched in 1992...
- Perri PeltzPerri PeltzPerri Peltz rejoined WNBC in 2005 after a nine year absence to co-anchor Live at Five with Sue Simmons. Peltz's previous stint at WNBC was from 1987 to 1996 where she co-anchored Weekend Today in New York with Ken Taylor and Weekend editions of News 4 New York at 6 and 11 with Ralph Penza...
- Juju ChangJuJu ChangHyunju "Juju" Chang is a Korean-American Emmy Award-winning television journalist for ABC News, and currently serves as a special correspondent and fill-in anchor for Nightline...
- Stone PhillipsStone PhillipsStone Stockton Phillips is an American television reporter and correspondent. He is the former co-anchor of Dateline NBC, a newsmagazine TV show. He also has worked as a substitute anchor for NBC Nightly News and Today and as a substitute moderator on Meet the Press. He is known for his clear...
- John QuiñonesJohn QuiñonesJuan Manuel "John" Quiñones is an ABC News correspondent, and currently the host of Primetime: What Would You Do?.-Early life and education:John Quiñones was born in San Antonio, Texas on May 23, 1952...
- Bill Ritter
- Geraldo RiveraGeraldo RiveraGeraldo Rivera is an American attorney, journalist, author, reporter, and former talk show host...
- Deborah Roberts
- Brian RossBrian Ross (journalist)Brian Elliot Ross is an American investigative correspondent for ABC News. He has been with ABC News since July 1994. From 1974 until 1994, Ross was a correspondent for NBC News.-Major scoops:...
- Carl SaganCarl SaganCarl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
- Jay SchadlerJay SchadlerJay Schadler is a correspondent on the ABC News program PrimeTime. He worked at WCVB in Boston, Massachusetts, WZZM in Grand Rapids, Michigan and KSTP in Minneapolis before joining ABC News in 1982....
- Lynn SherrLynn SherrLynn Sherr is an American broadcast journalist and author, best known as a correspondent for the ABC news magazine 20/20....
- Sander VanocurSander VanocurSander "Sandy" Vanocur is an American journalist.- Career :Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Vanocur moved to Peoria, Illinois when he was twelve years old. After attending Western Military Academy in Alton, Illinois, he earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the Northwestern...
- Chris WallaceChris Wallace (journalist)Christopher "Chris" Wallace is an American journalist, currently the host of the Fox Network program, Fox News Sunday. Wallace has won three Emmy Awards, the Dupont-Columbia Silver Baton Award, and a Peabody Award. Wallace has been with Fox News since 2003...
International broadcasts
- ABC News programming is shown daily on the 24 hour news network Orbit NewsOrbit NewsOSN News is a 24 hour satellite and cable channel offering exclusively American news programming from ABC, NBC, PBS, and MSNBC to U.S. expats and other viewers abroad, primarily geared towards an audience in the Arab countries...
in Europe and the Middle East. This includes 20/20. - In the Middle EastMiddle EastThe Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
on MBC4 on Wednesdays - Channel NewsAsiaChannel NewsAsiaChannel NewsAsia is an English language pan-Asian news network based in Singapore and owned by MediaCorp. Started on 1 March 1999 based in Singapore by Television Corporation of Singapore, it was launched internationally on 12 February 2001 as the international broadcasting arm of Channel...
(SingaporeSingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
only) - In Canada, 20/20 is currently available on CHCH Hamilton/TorontoCHCH-TVCHCH-DT, channel 11, is a television station originating in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, with transmitters located throughout Ontario. CHCH currently operates as an independent station, having previously served as a CBC Television affiliate, and more recently as the flagship station of the...
, CJNT MontrealCJNT-TVCJNT-DT is a Canadian multicultural television station in Montreal, Quebec. The station is owned and operated by Channel Zero and uses the on-air brand Metro 14.-History:...
and CHNU VancouverCHNU-TVCHNU-DT is an English language television station based in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. The station is licensed to the Fraser Valley Region, and also serves Metro Vancouver, Victoria and surrounding areas. CHNU is owned by ZoomerMedia, and is an owned and operated station of the Joytv... - In AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, it airs at 2pm Sundays (Extended Edition) and Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m. on cable news channel Sky News AustraliaSky News AustraliaSky News Australia is an Australian 24 hour cable and satellite news channel available in 2.5 million homes on Foxtel, Austar, Optus Television and Neighbourhood Cable subscription platforms....
and at 12:30 a.m. Wednesdays on Nine NetworkNine NetworkThe Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
. - In Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
on TVB (Airs Monday and Friday on TVB Pearl) - In IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
on Metro TV airs at 1:05pm on Fridays.
Local versions
- In the Republic of IrelandRepublic of IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
an Irish version of 20/20 launched on TV3TV3 IrelandTV3 is a free-to-air commercial television network in the Republic of Ireland. Launched on 20 September 1998 it was Ireland's first commercial broadcaster. The channel is owned by TV3 Group a subsidiary of Doughty Hanson & Co.-The TV3 Group:...
in 1998. The show used a mix of reports from Ireland and reports from the American edition until it was canceled in 2002. - In New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
TVNZ's TV2 airs an hour-long local version, featuring both locally and internationally produced stories.