Who is Elizabeth Vargas? 'America's Most Wanted' host struggled with alcoholism and covered pop icon Prince's death
In a surprise move, FOX announced that 'America's Most Wanted' will make its comeback after a decade. The true-crime show, which first debuted in 1988 and became a cultural phenomenon soon after, will now unleash real stories in Season 26! If you're waiting for John Walsh to be back as the host, prepare to be disappointed as he isn't returning.
Carrying forward Walsh's legacy is former ABC News anchor Elizabeth Vargas — an Emmy-winning lead investigative journalist. Her experience in covering crime has been countless and her past jobs include hosting 'World News Tonight' and '20/20' on ABC. In her recent interviews, she confessed how she "couldn't be more excited" for the opportunity to help close the loop on some of the cases that will feature on FOX's show.
If you're wondering who she is and want to know more about her life, here's all the scoop.
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What's new on ‘America's Most Wanted’?
Since its inception, 'America's Most Wanted' has focused on educating the audience about crime and criminals, with an aim to help citizens be aware of the occurrences around them and help them spot criminals.
Unlike its previous versions, the new avatar will be a decidedly high-tech affair, leaning into technology like augmented reality, 3D scanning and advancements in DNA research to help give viewers a more accurate representation. Audiences can also contact the show through social media, with tips being passed onto law enforcement agencies.
Each week, Vargas will ask for viewers’ help as she breaks down cases from the show’s new headquarters, consulting with a team of experts representing law enforcement units such as the FBI, US Marshall’s Service and Secret Service. The press release reads: "Returning at a time when social media and technology loom large in the public consciousness, 'America's Most Wanted' will offer a unique and urgent opportunity for viewers to be armchair detectives by helping law enforcement solve some of the toughest cases."
Who is Elizabeth Vargas?
A well-known journalist, Elizabeth Vargas has expressed her fascination for fugitive-hunting shows many times in the past. "There’s a bottomless appetite for true crime,” she said while also admitting that she actively engages with content from the genre including 'Unsolved Mysteries' on Netflix.
Elaborating further on what is so appealing about shows like this, she said, "It goes to our deepest fears that these things happen, while engaging our appetite for mysteries — the whodunit. It’s a human need to want justice.”
Vargas was born on September 6, 1962, to US Army Colonel Rafael Vargas and teacher Anne Vargas. As a child, she first moved to Japan, then Germany, later settled in Belgium before returning back to the United States.
She was inclined towards journalism from an impressionable age and pursued a degree in the same field from the University of Missouri in 1980. Her first job was at KOMU-TV where she served as a student reporter and showcased true grit to continue in the industry. Since then, she has only charted upwards on the success ladder.
She worked towards building a strong foundation for her career till 1993. During this period, she worked with a number of news stations including ABC's affiliate KTVK-TV and CBS's affiliate KTVN. Then in 1993, she joined NBC News as a correspondent for two of their shows 'Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric' and 'Dateline NBC'. She also appeared on the weekend edition of 'NBC Nightly News' during her time there.
It was in 1996 that she left NBC and joined ABC. Appointed as the correspondent for '20/20' and 'Primetime Thursday', her role was vast. She also co-anchored 'Primetime Monday', appeared as a substitute anchor on 'Good Morning America' and also hosted a number of specials for the network including the award-winning docu-series 'I.C.U., Arkansas Children's Hospital' that aired in 2002.
In 2005, she began co-anchoring 'World News Tonight' that cemented her reputation as one of the most prominent reporters in the States. Vargas quit her position at ABC in 2018 and joined A&E Networks as the host of 'A&E Investigates'. Some of the remarkable events she has covered in her long-standing career include breaking news coverage of the Orlando nightclub shooting, the shooting ambush in Dallas, the death of pop star Prince and the passing of boxing icon Muhammad Ali.
Vargas' professional life was soaring to new heights each passing day but her personal life was taking a hit. If reports are to be believed, she took to the bottle to ease out her anxiety which quickly turned her into an alcoholic. Confessing intimate details about that phase, she sat down with Diane Sawyer in 2016 to speak about her struggles for a special edition '20/20' and shed light on her recovery process.
In 2016, she published a memoir, 'Between Breaths: A Memoir of Panic and Addiction' chronicling her struggles. She is also an advocate for rehab and was once quoted saying, "Maybe if I speak out, I can just let a little tiny bit of air out of that balloon of shame and isolation..." Quite active on Instagram, she posts under her handle @evargastv!
'America's Most Wanted' Season 26 premieres on Monday, March 15, at 9:00 PM EDT on Fox. If you are wondering how to watch the show on other platforms, the network has announced that the episodes will be Tubi, FOX NOW, Hulu and on-demand. On-demand episodes are available for customers of AT&T TV, Cox, Fubo TV, Philo TV, DIRECTV, DISH, Hulu Live, Optimum, Spectrum, Verizon FiOS, XFINITY, YouTube TV, and many more.