Diana Perez Retires: ABC ‘World News Now’ Anchor Plans To Spend Time Raising Family

Diana Perez has decided to leave her post at ABC’s early morning show, World News Now, in order to spend more time with her growing family.

The anchor made the announcement this week, saying she was retiring in order to “spend more time with my family.” Perez gave birth to her second child early this year.

Big announcement on the show tonight! Pls watch #wnnfans

— Diana Perez (@DianaPerezTV) May 29, 2014

The announcement comes not long after Perez was handed a promotion on the show. After being a fill-in anchor for much of the previous year, Perez took a permanent seat in February.

At the time, Diana Perez said the loose tone of the show fit her well.

Perez told Zap2it:

“When I was given the opportunity to go to the network, it was one of those things where I always thought, ‘OK. Now is when you’ve got to get serious.’ While I still feel I am delivering true news and I am still a true professional, it’s just so wonderful to be able to let loose. That is my personality.”

“The format of the show plays so well into being able to show who you truly are, and that comes across on the screen. You just have that opportunity where you’re not always delivering the bad stuff. You get the really important news people have to hear, but you get it with a dose of irreverence… nothing I was expecting when I got called up to the network.”

The 33-year-old Perez had worked at a string of jobs in the New York and New England areas after graduating from Hofstra University in 2003. From 2006 to 2008, she served as a morning anchor and reporter at News 12 The Bronx, then moved to NBC Connecticut where she served as a fill-in anchor and New Haven bureau reporter.

Perez moved to WBZ in Boston in 2011, serving as anchor and reporter before joining ABC News the next year as a correspondent for NewsOne.

Diana Perez had also spoken about the difficulties of balancing her family and professional lives. Her husband, Ducis Rodgers, is a sports anchor at Philadelphia ABC affiliate WPVI, making for some challenging schedules.

“We’re two ships crossing in the night, we always say, so we really cherish our days off,” she said. “Every week, it’s a little different; during football season, he’s traveling a lot. And then we have our little one at home, and he demands a lot of attention from both of us. The best time of the week is when the three of us can be together as a family.”

Diana Perez did not say if her retirement was permanent or if she might consider a return to the anchor desk one day.