Robin Roberts is one of the most beloved news anchors in America, but she's also a big-time
producer who was once voted the most trusted person in television. What else don't you know
about the all-star anchor? Keep watching to find out.
While pretty much everyone knows Robin Roberts is one of Good Morning America's most beloved
anchors, not everyone knows that the star actually has a lot going on behind the cameras, too.
Roberts is a big-time producer and launched her very own production company,
Rock'n Robin Productions, in 2014. The company is behind numerous documentaries and specials,
including Shark Attack: The Paige Winter Story and History's Tuskegee Airmen:
Legacy of Courage, with Roberts acting as the president.
Roberts also has her own line of movies and documentaries
under the title Robin Roberts Presents, which air on Lifetime.
She first began working with the network in 2018 to create specials based on the lives of
world-renowned activist Mahalia Jackson and kidnapping survivor Kamiyah Mobley.
It seems like Roberts' productions are certainly a hit, too. In 2020,
the news anchor's contract with Lifetime was extended for four more new movies.
Roberts also serves as executive producer on a number of projects and teamed up with
none other than LeBron James on her Disney+ series, Turning the Tables with Robin Roberts,
which sees her chat with a wide range of female celebrities about all sorts of topics.
Robin Roberts is a big country music fan, so much so the genre actually
gave her her big broadcasting break. Yes, Roberts started out her glittering career
at the country music radio station WFPR-AM in Hammond, Louisiana, which is where she
started learning all the tricks of the trade while spinning the biggest country hits.
Despite now living in the bright lights of New York City, the Mississippi native
hasn't lost her passion for the genre. Roberts has chatted to country music's biggest stars on In the
Spotlight with Robin Roberts, including specials chatting with Carrie Underwood and others,
often in preparation for the CMA Awards.
Roberts told USA Today in 2013,
"I began my broadcasting career as a country music DJ in college. So the trade-off was I
wanted to be the sports reporter, and they were like, 'Okay, you can, but you have got to DJ,'
and I was like 'Okay, what kind of music do you play?' and they were like 'country.'"
Robin Roberts may spend most of her time reporting the news,
but she was also an eyewitness to one of the biggest New York news stories of 2009.
Roberts was one of the many New Yorkers who saw with her own eyes the horror of US
Airways Flight 1549 having to make an emergency landing in the Hudson River in January 2009,
as she saw the whole thing from her apartment which looks out over the iconic body of water.
Roberts has spoken out a few times about what she saw that day,
including sharing her experience with Tom Hanks on Good Morning America
in 2016 when he appeared on the morning show to promote Sully, his movie about the incident.
Hanks portrayed Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger in the movie, the pilot who managed to land the
plane safely on the water with everyone on board surviving. Roberts told Hanks
she thought she was witnessing a second 9/11 when she first saw the plane flying low over Manhattan.
"Do you know this? I saw it from my apartment. I was the second caller to 911."
A month earlier, Roberts teased Hanks' appearance on Good Morning America
after a fan tweeted her about witnessing what could have been
one of the worst air disasters in history. Roberts wrote on Twitter,
"I did call 911. Saw the landing from my apt balcony. Truly a miracle!"
In 2010, Roberts even met up with the real Sully
for a flight in a small jet for a Good Morning America segment.
"Feels like riding a bike?" "Oh, absolutely."
Robin Roberts might have a massive following, but with that comes enormous responsibility — and
she takes it seriously. Over the years, the star has been a big advocate for giving back,
supporting and bringing attention to multiple important charities. One of
Roberts' biggest non-profit crusades has been as an ambassador for Be The Match, as she teamed up
with the charity in 2012 to raise awareness of the importance of bone marrow donations.
"If you had the power to save a life, would you?"
The star joined forces with the charity not long after confirming she herself
needed a bone marrow transplant after being diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome,
but was lucky enough to receive a donation from her sister.
Roberts has also been a very big supporter of the V Foundation for Cancer Research,
working tirelessly to raise money to better improve the chances of cancer patients surviving
the disease. The star — who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 — even has her
own donation page to drum up funding that goes towards cancer research and programs.
Roberts has also used her star power to raise awareness for a slew of other charitable causes,
including the American Heart Association, American Stroke Association,
City of Hope, the Sherry Lansing Foundation, and Stand Up To Cancer.
Roberts also puts her charitable side on show as the host of the Good Morning America's Thriver
Thursday segment, in which she helps others experiencing health and personal issues.
"They are not survivors. You know the word I say: they're thrivers."
Robin Roberts' hard work bringing her sports reporting to the masses
allowed her to break down some very important barriers.
Roberts was ESPN's first-ever Black female sports journalist
when she joined the team back in 1990. But that's not all, she was also the first Black female host
of the sports show Wide World of Sports, as well as being the first woman ever to host a National
Football League pre-game show on network television. Now that's seriously impressive.
Roberts has been vocal about how she wanted to change the world of sportscasting for the better
for her fellow females and people of color but admitted to Arizona Central in 2014 she could,
quote, "feel beer cans pelting the TV sets" when she first started her career. She explained,
"I had great admiration for them, but I didn't want to be stuck talking to the coaches' wives.
I wanted to be Brent Musburger. [...] No one wanted a woman sports broadcaster in the deep
South, but news was a four-letter word to me. I was just so passionate about sports."
Fortunately, she never gave up.
Back in 2013, almost 20 years after debuting on Good Morning America, it was revealed that
the star had been voted the most trusted woman on television in a nationwide poll.
In the since-deleted Reader's Digest study,
1,000 Americans were asked to vote on how trustworthy they found 200 famous faces,
including Katie Couric, Barbara Walters, and Anderson Cooper. Roberts came in 12th place
on the list after a whopping 56% of Americans polled claimed they trusted her, putting her in
the position of being the most trustworthy TV personality, right behind Alex Trebek.
Speaking about the honor, Roberts responded by telling Reader's Digest that she was honored to
be bestowed the title and wished her parents were still alive to hear about it, saying,
"It would mean so much to them because all they wanted was for us to grow up to be good people.
They didn't care that sister is a social worker and brother is a teacher
and that two of us are on TV. All they wanted was for us to be trustworthy citizens."
Roberts added,
"There's a responsibility that goes with that, and it's not something I take lightly."
Ever wondered how Robin Roberts is able to face the day every day in such a calm
and collected manner? Well, all her years of experience and natural journalistic ability
probably play a part in her never-flustered demeanor on Good Morning America day after day,
but it turns out Roberts also has a little secret.
She told Woman's World in 2020 that she'd started meditating every morning a few years earlier,
which went a long way in helping her to stay calm. Roberts confessed she wasn't
sure about it at first because she thought she'd have to completely clear her mind,
but really got into it after realizing that was a myth. She explained,
"For me, it's about quieting my mind and body,
which is great for easing stress, but is also calming and invigorating at the same time.
Feeling my heartbeat slow and listening to my breath is very energizing for me."
It's not just in the morning where the star gets in a little mediation time, either.
Roberts shared she's been trying to fit what she described as a second short
meditation break into her day a little later because of the effect on her body and mind.
A moment that went on to be lauded as one of Roberts' most touching and real
was actually the moment Roberts thought would end her career.
Many fans may still remember the Good Morning America footage of the anchor in her adopted home
state of Mississippi, where she saw firsthand the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
"I'll tell you where the roof is. It's across the street."
Roberts was born in Alabama but grew up in Mississippi and returned to the town her family
still lived in to report on the horrific natural disaster — which, understandably, left her highly
emotional. Roberts recalled the moment in a 2019 interview with Entertainment Tonight, saying,
"When I went on the air, I cried,
because it was my home that was devastated along the Mississippi Gulf Coast."
"Mom's okay, sister's okay?" "They're alright."
She thought becoming so overwhelmed would get her fired from her prestigious job.
"This was 2005. No one showed emotion on the air and as an anchor."
But quite the opposite actually happened, and Roberts instead learned an invaluable skill.
She said that the way people responded helped her with her storytelling,
and being vulnerable on air was a defining moment for her.
Roberts has spoken out about the disaster a few times since
and returned with cameras in 2010 to see the progress being made.
"The way people responded,
and it told me that you can be authentic, and so I really appreciated that."
Not many people can claim to be besties with the Obamas,
but that's yet another impressive accolade Robin Roberts holds. Roberts considers Michelle
Obama and former President Barack Obama to be personal friends, so much so that her rapport
with the couple has allowed her to score some major exclusives with the two over the years.
Back in 2012, it was Roberts who got the scoop for Barack's infamous
interview regarding gay marriage, with a source claiming to Politico,
"She's friendly turf."
"I think same-sex couples should be able to get married."
It's thought Roberts' love of sports also created a great foundation for their friendship,
as the insider noted that their mutual passion is part of their rapport.
But it's not just Barack who turned to Roberts to share big news. Roberts also scooped an exclusive
with Michelle in November 2018 when the former First Lady candidly spoke out about her childhood,
her struggles with infertility, and marriage counseling sessions with Barack.
"What I learned about myself was that my happiness was up to me."
A few years earlier in 2013, Michelle was also very vocal in her support for Roberts
after she formally came out as gay, tweeting,
"[Robin], I am so happy for you and Amber! You continue to make us all proud."
Robin Roberts made the decision to not formally address her sexuality for several years
after stepping into the public eye and kept her relationship with her girlfriend,
Amber Laign very much under wraps for almost a decade.
The two first started dating in 2005, but Roberts didn't publicly acknowledge her sexuality or her
relationship in any kind of major way until she shared the news via Facebook in December 2013,
referring to Laign as her longtime girlfriend. But that doesn't mean it was a big secret.
The outlet claimed that Roberts was very much out to her family and friends — who
also knew about her relationship — and described Laign as Roberts' rock
during both her breast cancer and Myelodysplastic Syndrome diagnoses.
As for why Roberts made the decision to publicly come out to her fans when she did?
Well, TMZ claimed that she simply never felt it necessary to share publicly about that side of
her personal life. But Roberts has since gone on to help others share their truth with the world,
including former Bachelor star Colton Underwood, who publicly
came out during a bombshell interview on Good Morning America in April 2021.
"I'm gay, and I came to terms with that earlier this year."
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