ABC has announced that "World News" anchor Diane Sawyer will leave the program at the end of August and will be replaced by David Muir.

The announcement comes only five years after Sawyer took on the role and more than ten years after 40-year-old Muir joined the network. The latter will start his "World News" stint on September 2.

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In a press release, ABC News president James Goldston said the 68-year-old news icon will continue to be a "driving force" in the news firm. He described Sawyer as one of the biggest names in "modern journalism."

Sawyer said her time at "World News" was wonderful but she had decided to take on a full time role at the company. She will take on Barbara Walters' previous role and will focus mostly on specials, in-depth investigations, and interviews with big names.

ABC's announcement came as "World News" began overtaking the ratings of NBC's "Nightly News," based on ratings given by Nielsen. For the first time in six years, the ratings of ABC's news program topped the charts in May and are maintaining a five-year high.

Muir has substituted for Sawyer during the week and hosted the "World News" on weekends, so his promotion did not come as a surprise. He has also hosted the "20/20" news magazine and has covered many of the biggest stories in the past ten years.

ABC also announced that George Stephanopoulos, the host of "Good Morning America" and "This Week," will be promoted as the chief anchor of the news network. He will cover national breaking news, elections, and other specials.

Muir began climbing ABC's news ladder when he joined the network in 2003 as the host of the overnight news show "World News Now." He then proceeded to cover major world news such as the "Arab Spring" uprisings and fill in at "World News" and other programs.

Before joining ABC, Muir had worked at various local affiliates in Boston and Syracuse. As of now, Muir is not married and has no kids.
ABC has not yet announced Muir's replacement in the weekend news program.

TagsDiane Sawyer, World News, David Muir, ABC