Roberts, Robin Renée
1960-present · Contribution: 1983-present
Broadcast journalist; sportscaster
Became the first Black woman to anchor ESPN’s flagship SportsCenter program in 1990, then, since 2005, has co-anchored ABC’s Good Morning America, leading it back to the No. 1 morning-show ranking and earning a 2012 Peabody Award for her on-air documentation of her own cancer treatment

Portraits are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Quick facts
- Born
- 1960, Tuskegee, Alabama
- Active since
- 1983
- Category
- Press & Photography
- Best known for
- ESPN pioneer and Good Morning America co-anchor
Impact on the world
Roberts broke barriers for women in sports broadcasting and then, from the anchor chair of America's top morning show, turned her own illness into a public-health movement that saved lives.
Sources
- ABC News
1 more sources and references are available to members.
Related visionaries
Gumbel, Bryant Charles
1948-present
Became the first Black journalist to host a major network morning news program when he took over NBC’s Today in 1982, then spent 29 seasons (1995-2023) hosting HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, widely regarded as the most honored program in sports journalism history
Ifill, Gwendolyn L.
1955-2016
Became, in 1999, the first African American woman to host a nationally televised U.S. public affairs program, moderating PBS's “Washington Week,” and in 2013 formed the first all-female co-anchor team in network news history alongside Judy Woodruff on the PBS NewsHour
Simpson, Carole Estelle
1940-present
Became the first African American woman to anchor a major U.S. network newscast when NBC News hired her as a correspondent in 1975, and, after 15 years anchoring ABC’s World News Tonight weekend edition, became in 1992 the first woman and first person of color to serve as sole moderator of a U.S. presidential debate
Pitts, Byron A.
1960-present
Overcame childhood illiteracy and a severe stutter to become chief national correspondent for CBS Evening News and a regular 60 Minutes contributor, then co-anchor of ABC News’ Nightline, winning multiple Emmy Awards over more than four decades in broadcast journalism