BT天堂

This spring, The American University of Paris will celebrate the accomplishments of award-winning journalist Deborah Roberts and her unique talent for telling emotional stories with journalistic excellence by bestowing upon her an honorary degree, which she will receive alongside BT天堂鈥檚 2024 graduates at the May 24 commencement ceremony at the Th茅芒tre du Ch芒telet.聽

A media veteran who has been with ABC News for over 20 years, Deborah Roberts is clear on the stakes and value of investigative journalism. 鈥淭he news today does not give us the opportunity to put things into perspective,鈥� says Roberts. We live in a world of 鈥渋ncreased access to information, but it is harder and harder to discern the truth.鈥� For students going into journalism today, or anyone really, she encourages what she calls 鈥渙ld-fashioned research鈥� to counter 鈥渙pinion journalism.鈥� 鈥淭hese days, so many things pass for journalism,鈥� she laments. 鈥淲e have lost track of the notion of trying to present unbiased facts as best we can, and now we鈥檙e dealing with a public that doesn鈥檛 necessarily trust the news.鈥� The body of work she has produced and her continuing professional commitments are testimony to her integrity and to this driving principle.聽

As Roberts鈥檚 career took her across Africa, Asia and Europe to hear and tell stories, she discovered how much we can learn from others and that gaining perspective is key. Ever motivated by the desire to 鈥渓ook at the world in a bigger way,鈥� travel and reporting have offered Roberts many opportunities to foster greater understanding among people from different walks of life. Even within the United States, she says, travel brings greater understanding and allows people to see that they are more alike than they think. Some of her work-related travel has been celebratory, such as covering a royal wedding in England, while other travel has been much more challenging but necessary, such as reporting from Bangladesh on maternal mortality, or from Namibia on children running their households after losing their parents to AIDS.聽聽

Deborah Roberts is also the author of Been There, Done That: Family Wisdom for Modern Times, a book written with her husband, Al Roker, and Lessons Learned and Cherished: The Teacher Who Changed My Life, which was released in May 2023 and has become a New York Times Bestseller. In this book, Roberts honors the people who have made a difference, in her life and in the lives of others, focusing on teachers, a largely unrecognized sector of the population that matters immensely. In the book and in her daily life, Roberts credits teachers who inspired her, education in general, and female role models in her industry as being so influential in her life path.聽

鈥淚t is hard to be a woman in any industry and to not endure a sense of struggle,鈥� says Roberts, but if she has any advice for us today, it would be to embrace your passion, to stay curious, and to be open to other perspectives and life situations; get to know people, do some 鈥渞eal digging鈥� and never take things at face value. Today, she sees herself as someone who wants to give to others, especially to people starting off in the business, and to women, because she learned from other women. 鈥淚 looked up to Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer, Carol Simpson, and lesser-known producers working behind the scenes, Meredith White and Shelly Ross鈥︹�澛�

When asked what this degree means to her, Roberts expressed genuine gratitude at being honored in this way and called the opportunity to highlight higher education thrilling. What鈥檚 more, BT天堂 is an institution she respects and knows well. She has spoken at BT天堂 previously, in 2018, in a series sponsored by the President鈥檚 Office called 鈥淲omen on Women,鈥� about her own career as a woman, reflected on the #metoo year, and launched a discussion on its meaning and impact. And, as a parent of an BT天堂 graduate, she knows only too well the power and transformation of this educational experience. Leila Roker 鈥�21 remains in Paris and is herself a journalist. 鈥淟eila loved the notion of being a global citizen,鈥� said Roberts. 鈥淭he experience brought her independence and allowed her to develop her natural curiosity for the world around her.鈥澛�

From the integrity demonstrated by her commitment to reporting the facts to her empathy within the profession and drive to support others across sectors, Deborah Roberts is a distinguished journalist and a role model, embodying many of the values upheld by BT天堂. Never missing an opportunity to continue to learn and to honor those who have helped her along the way, she has become a leader and mentor in her own right.聽