Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts Look Back on Making History

The former Good Morning America duo discuss everything from their bumpy on-air beginning to Roberts’ cancer battles.

- Jason Lynch And A.J. Katz

In 2005, one year after the launch of TVNewser (now owned by Adweek), morning news history was made when Robin Roberts joined Diane Sawyer as anchor of ABC’s Good Morning America. It marked the first time ever that two women had hosted a national morning news show. They worked side by side for five years, until Sawyer departed in 2009 to anchor ABC World News (she stepped down in 2014 and now focuses on long-form interviews and investigations as an ABC News anchor). ESPN alum Roberts— who had been a GMA contributor for a decade before she was named anchor—remains on the show, now alongside anchors George Stephanopoulos and Michael Strahan. As part of TVNewser’s 15th anniversary this month, and this week’s 30 Most Impactful TV Newsers of the Past 15 Years package, we reunited Roberts and Sawyer. The duo spoke with Adweek TV/media editor Jason Lynch and TVNewser editor A.J. Katz about their time together, including their bumpy start on-air, how Sawyer helped Roberts publicly and bravely share her cancer battle with GMA viewers— twice—and what they miss most about working together.

Adweek: What do you remember most about your early time together on GMA?

SAWYER: I’d been on for a while with Charlie [Gibson]. Robin shows up, and I just remember all the lights in the room being brighter. There was sun where there wasn’t sun.

ROBERTS: Diane always made me feel that way, but it was a bit intimidating. I was a little insecure coming from the sports world to, I mean, Diane Sawyer! But they never once, Diane in particular, made me feel like I didn’t belong.

SAWYER: I remember the first time or the second time I interviewed you on some sports thing on Good Morning America, and I mangled your name so badly and your title so horribly that you went, “Whatever!” and just turned to camera. [They both laugh.]