David Muir quotes: thoughts and reflections from the ABC World News Tonight anchor.
“People have so many choices.”
“Every day, there is a new piece of data or a new layer to peel back.”
“The power of imagination makes us infinite.”
“I think that in this era, where people are really hungry for someone that they can trust and a team they can trust, that it’s just something they sense in their gut.”
“I think I was always a curious kid.”
“Part of my inspiration comes from TV, though the fictional variety. I admit to binge-watching the AMC series Mad Men because it reminded me of my childhood in Syracuse.”
“As a kid, I had always dreamed of seeing the world beyond my backyard and my neighborhood. That is what drew me to watch the news every night. I was the one who was outside playing with everyone else but who would disappear when it came time for the news.”
“I wrote to the local news guy when I was 12 years old. I said, ‘What do I need to do to be you one day?'”
“Every evening, I would excuse myself from playing in the backyard and go inside to watch the evening news. I wanted to get out there and see the world, and as a kid, I knew that Peter Jennings had a thirst and hunger to travel the world, too.”
“I was drawn to him. And I don’t think at 12 or 13 you can put into words why you’re drawn to a particular journalist, but Peter’s curiosity was infectious. He seemed to be the one who was having a conversation with America every night.”
“Peter Jennings was the James Bond of evening news, and I always wanted to be that. His evening news was really a conversation with America, and I hope that’s something I can achieve.”
“I often say that my job is to keep Diane’s [Sawyer, that is] chair warm two days a week. And it’s an honor to do that.”
“I jumped at the chance to immerse myself in the language and culture of Spain by studying abroad at the University of Salamanca. This cultural experience provided me practice to a future career in world traveling to chase a story. Studying abroad was a chance to take a break from my academic discipline and flex a different kind of muscle learning a language and exploring a tiny corner of the world I had never imagined I would temporarily call home.”
“I’ve always believed in going where the story takes you, to be there and breathe it in.”
“A huge part of my life is my job, and that’s the highest compliment you can pay to any job. I often work seven days a week. I’m not looking for a pat on the back because I love what I do.”
“There’s no such thing as a typical workday. My days are filled with conversations with producers, meetings, and more research. I can honestly say that this newscast is a living, breathing thing.”
“This is my dream job, no question.”
“I think people do want to cut through the noise, and they do want straight shooters, and they want you to call people out on the facts when the facts are the facts.”
“The reporting has always been what drives me.”
“I need to ask the questions the people at home want answered.”
“I am convinced that no matter how dire the situation is, that one of the ways that you bring the anxiety levels down in this country is to arm people with the facts. You have to report it. You have to put it in the proper context. And as difficult as those moments are, I also firmly believe in some way that actually helps people at home. Because the more information they have, the more in control I hope that they feel in this situation that in many ways feels out of control.”
“If we can get people engaged in the world around them in any form, in any way, that’s a positive thing.”
“When I travel the country, I am often struck by how much we actually have in common. It’s much more powerful than how much there is that’s reported that divides us.”
“When I look back at it as an adult, when I was a kid and I wanted to see the world, that for me meant covering the severe thunderstorms in the next county. Now, I am literally seeing the world. I’m grateful for that. It’s all the same hunger that drives me today.”
“I feel, in this job, I’ve had the privilege and responsibility to witness so much history firsthand. All of it fuels me. I’m grateful to have seen everything I’ve seen, whether it’s the difficult moments or the uplifting moments.”
“It’s a business driven by curiosity. If you don’t want to go out and learn about the world and see the place, it’s the wrong business. But if you do, I’ve had an unbelievable front row seat.”
“But you don’t need a camera or a microphone to have a voice.”
“I’m no different from the intern in Syracuse who then became the rookie reporter in Syracuse. I think the sensibilities of having grown up in Upstate New York and the concerns, the fears, the hopes of the people there are reflected all over the country. And that still drives me to this day.”
“This job takes me all over the world, and I can’t think of a better place to catch my breath than my home in Syracuse. It’s always been my dream to spend more time back home with family.”
“We’re all in this together, and we’ll tackle it again tomorrow. And there’s actually quite a bit that unites us still in this country.”
