Despite always being a calming presence on our television screens, “ABC World News Tonight” anchor David Muir has had his share of sorrow offscreen. And one of the most trying moments was not while he was reporting news abroad, but rather when Muir was with his family; his parents divorced before he started high school. 

As a small silver lining, according to Syracuse, his parents’ separation happened around the time that Muir also began to take his fledgling journalism career seriously. He had written a letter to Ron Curtis, an anchor at WTVH-TV 5 — Muir’s local CBS affiliate in Syracuse — and asked Curtis how he could become an anchor himself. The anchor wrote Muir back, saying, “Competition in television news is keen. There’s always room for the right person. It could be you.” 

The encouragement inspired Muir; he asked his parents to take turns driving him to volunteer at the station, where he would carry tripods, fetch Coca-Cola’s, and handle scripts. His volunteer work soon turned into an internship, with Muir unable to get enough of the newsroom. “When most kids go off to do other things, I remember just begging them to take me to that TV station,” he said. “I’m sure they dreaded it. Between the two of them, they had to get me there. To this day, I’m grateful they would drive me to 980 James St.” Little did his parents know that their sacrifice would pave the way for Muir’s transformation into an award-winning broadcast journalist.

Despite being intelligent, thorough, and plenty courageous, David Muir is also naturally photogenic, though he is certainly his own harshest critic. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Muir acknowledged that he has a go-to expression that he busts out for fans who request selfies. The signature look involves slightly angling his face away from the camera while giving it a cheeky combo of a grin and a pout. Muir also had notes to give himself on his Emmy-award-winning looks, saying, “My head always looks three times the size.” However, he is quick to immediately fact-check himself by reminding fans and viewers that it is the camera angle that enlarges his head.

And while Muir may enjoy taking shots at the sometimes self-centered life that comes with being on television all the time, he also knows and acknowledges the responsibility and duty to the public that comes with being a news anchor. When legendary journalist Barbara Walters passed away, Muir appeared to be hit hard like the rest of us. He paid his respects on Instagram, writing alongside a photo of the two of them together, “So often we toss around the words – icon, legend, trailblazer – but Barbara Walters was all of these – and perhaps above all else, Barbara Walters was brave. She paved the way for so many – we learned from her – and remain in awe of her to this day. RIP, Barbara.”