Carole Simpson

Fall 2000 Mary Louise Smith Chair in Women and Politics

*On October 5, 2000, Carole Simpson presented the lecture "Challenges in Broadcast Journalism."

A television broadcaster for more than 20 years and the first African-American woman to anchor a major network newscast, Carole Simpson anchored ABC’s “World News Tonight Sunday” from 1988 to 2003. She retired from ABC in 2006 to become a leader-in-residence at Emerson College in Boston. She is currently a member of the full-time faculty at Emerson, teaching courses in public affairs reporting, political communication and broadcast journalism.

Simpson became the first minority woman to moderate a presidential debate when she moderated the debate held between George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Ross Perot in 1992. She was one of the reporters on the critically acclaimed documentary, “Black and White in America” and anchored three, hour-long ABC News specials on “The Changing American Family,” “Public Schools in America” and “Sex and Violence in the Media.” In 1990, Simpson was a member of the “Nightline” team in South Africa and helped anchor ABC’s live coverage of the release of Nelson Mandela from his 27-year imprisonment. She also has anchored many major breaking news stories such as the Persian Gulf War, the Tiananmen massacre and the Clarence Thomas-Anita Hill hearings.

Her efforts on behalf of women and minorities include serving as chair of the ABC News Women’s Advisory Board, vice chair of the International Women’s Medical Foundation and member of the board of directors of the National Commission of Working Women. Simpson has established several college scholarships for women and minorities pursuing careers in broadcast journalism at the University of Michigan, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in journalism. She also completed graduate work at the University of Iowa.

Carole Simpson wrote her memoir, "NewsLady," in 2010.