Diane Sawyer's Biography

Diane Sawyer is shown in this file photo. (George Lange/ABC)

Diane Sawyer is the anchor of ABC's flagship broadcast "World News." She is also the network's principal anchor for breaking news, election coverage, and special events.

Ms. Sawyer is one of the most respected journalists in the world. She has traveled the globe delivering in-depth and breaking news reports and has conducted interviews with almost every major newsmaker of our time. Her primetime documentaries have won critical acclaim for shedding light on difficult and previously under-reported topics including her in-depth reporting on the U.S. foster care system and realities of poverty in America.

Throughout 2012 Sawyer anchored ABC's "Your Voice, Your Vote" coverage of the presidential elections with Chief Political Correspondent George Stephanopoulos. Together they moderated the most-watched debate of the election cycle in Des Moines, Iowa and a debate in New Hampshire just days before the Granite state's first-in-the-nation primary. Sawyer interviewed the Presidential candidates at key moments throughout the campaign including the first interview with Mitt Romney and his wife Ann after he secured the Republican nomination in April 2012 and the first interview with President Obama after the pivotal first Presidential debate in October.

George Lange/ABC

Diane Sawyer is shown in this file photo. View Full Size

George Lange/ABC

Diane Sawyer is shown in this file photo.

In October 2012 Sawyer anchored an unprecedented series of special reports, "Hidden America: Don't Shoot I Want to Grow Up," which took a closer look at the violence plaguing Chicago – America's third-largest city. She facilitated a solutions-based discussion between members of several rival gangs to see what, if anything, can be done to reverse the alarming pattern of violence and murder in the streets.

Throughout 2011 Sawyer sat down for exclusive interviews with some of the year's biggest newsmakers including: Commander Mark Kelly in the wake of the tragic shooting of his wife Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, AZ; Donald Rumsfeld in his first interview since leaving the Bush Administration; the first interview with Jaycee Dugard; and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords who shared her remarkable story of recovery for the first time since the tragic shooting in Tucson. Plus, Sawyer brought viewers audio recordings of the never before heard interviews with former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy recorded in the months after her husband's assassination and spoke exclusively with Caroline Kennedy. In June Sawyer conducted the first joint interview with outgoing Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and General David Petraeus in Afghanistan and conducted the first interview with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after the U.S. took military action in Libya.

When Japan was hit with a devastating combination of earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear emergency in March 2011, Sawyer was the only evening news anchor to report on the aftermath live from Japan – shining a light on the stories of those who were directly affected.

In November 2010, Sawyer took "World News" on a rare trip to China. Traveling from Shanghai to Beijing, she reported on the progress the Chinese have made in the areas of education, transportation and green technologies.

When controversy over the building of an Islamic community center near Ground Zero sparked a nationwide conversation about Islam during the summer of 2010, Sawyer anchored a special primetime hour "Diane Sawyer Reporting: Islam Questions & Answers" to address the many misconceptions about Muslims and the religion of Islam.