ABC News
| ABC News | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | New York |
| Type: | News Media |
| Affiliation: | ABC (Disney/ABC Television Group) |
| Top official: | Almin Karamehmedovic, President |
| Website: | Official website |
ABC News is the news division of ABC, which is a part of the Disney/ABC Television Group. It was founded in 1943.[1]
Background
ABC was founded in 1943 as a radio station. Originally an affiliate of NBC, it was sold as a result of a ruling that prohibited corporations from owning more than one network. It began television broadcasting in 1948. ABC was sold to the Walt Disney Company in 1995.[2]
In a 2025 conference, president Almin Karamehmedovic said the following about ABC News' mission: "We were called to journalism because we believe in its value in society. The role of an independent press is essential, and we cannot take this for granted. For 70 years, ABC News has delivered exceptional reporting, interviews and analysis — this is why audiences turn to us. We must continue to prove our value to protect our future. We must earn their trust every single day by providing straightforward journalism."[3]
Leadership
In August 2024, Almin Karamehmedovic was named president of ABC News.[4]
Work and activities
Presidential debates
2024
In 2024, ABC News hosted the second presidential debate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. David Muir and Linsey Davis moderated the debate.[5] ABC News also would have hostedthe sixth Republican primary debate, but it was canceled.[6]
2020
In 2019 and 2020, ABC News hosted the |third and eigth Democratic primary debates. The third one was moderated by Linsey Davis, David Muir, Jorge Ramos, and George Stephanopoulos and the eigth one was moderated by Linsey Davis, David Muir, George Stephanopoulos, Adam Sexton, and Monica Hernandez.[7][8]
2016
February 6, 2016 Republican debate
ABC News hosted the eighth Republican primary debate in Manchester, N.H. on February 6, 2016. The debate was moderated by Martha Raddatz and David Muir. The debate was sponsored by the Independent Journal Review. The debate included Ted Cruz, Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, John Kasich, Ben Carson and Chris Christie, however Carly Fiorina was excluded due to her failure to meet the debate qualification criteria.[9][10]
December 19, 2015 Republican debate
In November 2015, ABC News announced that Martha Raddatz, ABC's chief global affairs correspondent, David Muir, host of World News Tonight with David Muir, and WMUR-TV (ABC) anchor Josh McElveen, would moderate the Democratic presidential debate in New Hampshire on December 19, 2015.[11] The debates were a partnership between ABC News, the New Hampshire Union Leader.[11]
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this organization made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope. Know of one we missed? Click here to let us know.
Circulation
In the 2024-2025 tv season, ABC News' World News Tonight received 7.2 million total viewers.[12]
Finances
As of December 2025, financial data for ABC News was not available. If you have information to share, click here.
Media
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms ABC News. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- What is an influencer?
- David Muir
- George Stephanopoulos
- Martha Raddatz
External links
- ABC News
- ABC News on Facebook
- ABC News on Instagram
- ABC News on Twitter
- ABC News on Youtube
- The Walt Disney Company
Footnotes
- ↑ EBSCO, "American Broadcasting Company (ABC)," accessed December 11, 2025
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedEBSCO - ↑ The Hollywood Reporter, "ABC News Chief Sets New Mission and Structure As Division Seeks to Move on From Tough Layoffs," March 18, 2025
- ↑ Axios, "Almin Karamehmedovic named president of ABC News," August 19, 2024
- ↑ ABC News, "Presidential debate to be held at National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, ABC News announces," August 16, 2024
- ↑ ABC News, "ABC News cancels New Hampshire Republican primary debate," January 16, 2014
- ↑ ABC News, "Read the full transcript of ABC News' 3rd Democratic debate," September 13, 2019
- ↑ Rev, "New Hampshire Democratic Debate Transcript," accessed December 11, 2025
- ↑ ABC, "ABC News Announces New Hampshire Republican Debate Candidate Lineup," February 4, 2016
- ↑ Huffington Post, "Donald Trump And Ted Cruz Will Throw Haymakers At Saturday's ABC Debate Ahead Of New Hampshire Vote," February 6, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Politico, "David Muir, Martha Raddatz, Josh McElveen to moderate ABC debates," November 24, 2015
- ↑ TV Insider, "NBC, ABC & CBS Evening News Ratings 2024-2025 TV Season Revealed," September 24, 2025
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