barbara waltersSeasoned reporter Barbara Walters took a nasty fall this weekend while covering the Inauguration and was hospitalized shortly thereafter. Saturday night, the 83-year-old newswoman fell on a step at the residence of the British Ambassador to the United States, Peter Westmacott, and cut her forehead open. ABC spokesman Jeffrey Schneider said that after the fall Walters was alert and "telling everyone what to do, which we all take as a very positive sign." But still, maybe it's time to hang up the notebook and pencil, Babs. 

Or at least slow down a bit.

Think what you want of Barbara Walters, and her penchant for interrupting the people she's interviewing, but she's one of the most respected people in the news industry. She's been around since forever; she was the first female news anchor to earn a million dollar a year paycheck; her show, The View, is still going strong 16 years later; and each December, everyone looks forward to her Most Fascinating People list. She may not be liked by all, but the woman's a juggernaut. She's had career success most can only dream of. But with this latest injury -- even though she seems fine -- and after her heart surgery in 2010, why not just retire?

Clearly, journalism is in Walters' blood. She lives and breathes it, and isn't in the game for the paycheck anymore. But her body might be trying to tell her something: Slow down. I think it's great that she's still working -- it's obviously a labor of love -- but she doesn't need to be going Charlie's Angels 2 Full Throttle all the time.

I have the utmost respect for Barbara Walters and her vast and impressive career, but I think it'd be a wise decision to dial things back a notch. A fancy career is great. But without your health, what does it matter?

Do you think Barbara Walters should retire?

 

Image via Rubenstein/Flickr