The entertainment world has been left rocked by the death of legendary broadcaster and TV personality Barbara Walters at the age of 93.
Per BBC News, news of the television trailblazer's passing was confirmed on Friday evening (December 30), by the star's publicist, Cindi Berger.
"Barbara Walters passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by loved ones," Berger said in her statement. "She lived her life with no regrets. She was a trailblazer not only for female journalists, but for all women."
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, during the Great Depression in 1929, Walters was exposed to the lifestyle of celebrities and fame from a young age, as she would accompany her booking agent father. In her 2008 memoir, Walters recalled how the performers and dancers her father worked with would always make a fuss over her.
After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in English, Walters would eventually find work writing press releases for NBC affiliate WNBT-TV (now WNBC). This role eventually led to Walters becoming a writer on The Morning Show at CBS.
However, Walters is undoubtedly best known for her time with ABC - becoming the first-ever female co-anchor of a network evening news program in 1976.
Throughout her decades-long career, Walters would go on to moderate presidential debates, interview every POTUS from Richard Nixon to Donald Trump, and scoop a whopping 12 Emmy awards.
And following her passing, Walters' final social media posts highlight just how much her fans and their support meant to her.
For example, over on Instagram, Walters shared her final post to the social media platform all the way back in July of 2015.
However, the now-poignant post shows the TV legend smiling alongside a fan who she says she had stopped to take a quick selfie with.
She captioned the post: "Decided that I might make a fan happy today, I mean [it's] Monday. Haha who likes Mondays?"
That post has now been flooded with tributes following news of Walters' passing, including one particularly touching post from a fan, who commented: "She was strong and assertive, but had class and showed respect. They no longer make journalists like her."
Additionally, over on Twitter, Walters' final tweet - shared on her birthday back in 2017 - revealed just how much her fans' kind words meant to her.
"Thanks for all of the warm birthday wishes from far and wide," she wrote. "I appreciate everyone who reached out on my special day."
Per the New York Post, Walters made her final public appearance back in 2016, when she attended the opening night of Florian Zeller's incredible play, The Father, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in New York City.
Our thoughts go out to Walters' family, friends, and fans at this time.
