“Good Morning America” closed its Thursday, September 17, 2026, broadcast with a tribute to Judd Parson, an editor who had worked on the ABC morning program for nearly 25 years.

All of the anchors marked the death together, seated side by side on the studio couch: George Stephanopoulos, Michael Strahan, Rebecca Jarvis, Lara Spencer, Sam Champion and Ginger Zee.

“We have some sad news to share this morning about a member of our GMA family. Our editor Judd Parson has passed away,” Stephanopoulos said in opening the segment. “He had a warm smile, easy sense of humor, and he loved to help people,” Stephanopoulos said.

Strahan spoke next. “Judd leaves a lasting legacy with the countless GMA producers and editors he mentored over the years,” he said.

Parson worked those years overnight, the hours in which a morning show is quietly assembled before the country wakes up. He cut thousands of stories, and the long line of producers and editors he trained went on to run segments of their own. Colleagues described him as beloved.

The broadcast did not give his age, and no cause of death has been reported. Three children and five grandchildren survive him.

For the program, it is a second loss in a matter of weeks. On September 3, the show ended its broadcast with a tribute to Francisco Antonio “Fran” Saldaña, a GMA maintenance engineer who died on August 29 at 70 from congestive heart failure.

“Before we go today, we want to celebrate Francisco Saldaña, a beloved member of the GMA family,” Rebecca Jarvis said as photographs of him appeared on screen, adding that “Fran had an extraordinary career.” Saldaña began that career in the Dominican Republic, where he covered the Nicaraguan revolution, before moving to the United States. His television work spanned more than five decades, reaching back to the early 1970s in his native country, and he had worked with Disney and ABC News since 2017.

“He did everything from launching cable systems to teaching college before coming to ABC and becoming a treasured member of the GMA engineering team,” anchor Whit Johnson said. “We’ll remember him for his curiosity, love of travel and gardening, and his humor. He will be missed.”

Gio Benitez closed that tribute simply: “We will miss him.”