Born on February 8, 1940, in Nelson, Lancashire, England, Ted Koppel is the only child of German-Jewish parents who fled Nazi Germany. The family immigrated to the United States when Koppel was 13. He attended Syracuse University at 16, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Speech and Political Science. He later earned a Master of Arts in mass communications research and political science from Stanford University.

Koppel joined ABC Radio News in June 1963 as its youngest-ever correspondent. He transitioned to television in 1966 as ABC’s Vietnam War correspondent, and later served as Hong Kong bureau chief, Miami bureau chief, and chief diplomatic correspondent. In 1980, he helped launch Nightline out of ABC’s nightly coverage of the Iran hostage crisis. He went on to anchor the program for 25 years before stepping down in 2005 after 42 years with the network.

Post-Nightline, Ted Koppel has served as managing editor of the Discovery Channel and contributed to NPR, BBC World News America, and NBC’s Rock Center with Brian Williams. He has also been a senior contributor to CBS News Sunday Morning since 2016.