Barbara Walters Announces Retirement On 'The View'; Walters Will Conclude 50-Year News Career In Summer 2014

After 40 years on-air, Barbara Walters is calling it a day. Walters announced her retirement on today's episode of The View. Walters will continue working on the show and with ABC News until the summer of 2014, but said the decision is entirely her own and is not health related.

Walters first started her career in magazine journalism and began work for NBC's Today in 1961 as a writer-researcher, only to ultimately become the show's first female cohost in 1974. She has become synonymous with her annual Barbara Walters' 10 Most Fascinating People special, which has aired every December since 1993, as well as her talk show The View, which debuted in 1997.

"I am very happy with my decision and look forward to a wonderful and special year ahead both on The View and with ABC News. I created The View and am delighted it will last beyond my leaving it," said Walters to ABC News. "I do not want to appear on another program or climb another mountain. I want instead to sit on a sunny field and admire the very gifted women - and OK, some men too - who will be taking my place."

The network is planning to honor Walters' career with numerous tribute specials throughout the year.

"There's only one Barbara Walters, and we look forward to making her final year on television as remarkable, path-breaking and news-making as Barbara herself. Barbara will always have a home at ABC News and we look forward to a year befitting her brilliant career, filled with exclusive interviews, great adventures and indelible memories," said ABC News President Ben Sherwood in a statement.

The rumors about Barbara's retirement had been growing louder as her health began to fail her in recent months; she was hospitalized last year after falling at an inauguration party and was sidelined earlier this year after coming down with a case of the chicken pox. It was initially reported that she would announce her retirement in early April, but Barbara publicly denied those rumors on The View.

Prior to her announcement, her colleagues in the news world had already begun to ponder about what kind of impact her retirement will have.

"Saying that Barbara Walters blazed a trail for a generation of female journalists would understate her impact," said MSNBC anchor Mika Brzezinski. "Barbara broke the rules, made up a new set for women to work by, and broke them again in a sweeping, breathtaking career that revolutionized broadcast news and made my career possible."