John Walsh (television host)

Walsh was later the host of The Hunt with John Walsh, a successor to AMW, which debuted on July 13, 2014 on CNN. The Hunt was in turn succeeded by In Pursuit with John Walsh, which premiered in January 2019 on Investigation Discovery.

After securing a deal with Fox, Walsh launched America's Most Wanted in 1988. By that time, Walsh was already well known because of the murder of his son and his subsequent actions to help missing and exploited children. America's Most Wanted was the longest-running crime reality show in Fox's history and contributed to the capture of more than 1,000 fugitives. Fox canceled the series in June 2011, but aired four specials during the 2011-12 season. On December 2, 2011, the series returned as a regular weekly first-run series on Lifetime. The last episode aired on October 12, 2012; five months later, in March 2013, Lifetime officially canceled the series.

Toole, the prime suspect in Adam's abduction and murder, died in prison in 1996 while serving a life sentence for other crimes. The Hollywood Police Department officially identified him as Adam's killer on December 16, 2008, and the case was considered closed. Over the years, Toole had twice confessed to the killing, but both times he later recanted his admissions. In addition to the Walsh murder, Toole had claimed responsibility for hundreds of other murders, but police determined that most of these confessions were lies.

In October 2008, he was awarded the Operation Kids 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award for his dedication to protecting children and to raise funds for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which Walsh co-founded with his wife.

Many names had been mentioned in connection to the case since the murder, but detectives kept returning to that of serial killer Ottis Toole. John Walsh had long said he believed that Toole, a drifter, was responsible for the crime, saying investigators found a pair of green shorts and a sandal similar to what Adam was wearing at Toole's home in Jacksonville, Florida. In January 2007, deceased serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer fell under suspicion for the murder of Adam. This speculation was discounted by Walsh in an America's Most Wanted statement on February 6, 2007.

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act (Pub. L. 109–248 (text) (PDF)) was signed into law by U.S. President George W. Bush on July 27, 2006, following a two-year journey through the United States Congress. It was intensely lobbied for by Walsh and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Primarily, it focuses on a national sex offender registry, tough penalties for failing to register as a sex offender following release from prison, and civilian access to state websites that track sex offenders. Critics argue that the system amounts to making offenders wear a lifelong "Scarlet Letter," regardless of the circumstances of their cases.

Hayden and Callahan sometimes accompany their father when filming TV shows, including America's Most Wanted. Callahan is now filming with his father on In Pursuit With John Walsh. The show tells the stories of victims and their families looking for justice for their murdered loved ones. On the show of July 27, 2006 of Larry King Live, Larry King said that Hayden resembled Adam.

On August 15, 2006, Walsh's hometown of Auburn, New York, named a street after him.

Walsh generated a great deal of controversy during a summer press tour in 2006 when he stated to the media he had jokingly told senators to implant "exploding" chips in the anuses of sex offenders. He stated, "I said implant it in their anus and if they go outside the radius, explode it, that would send a big message." Walsh stated this was a "joke", but that "nobody thought it was funny." Walsh later suggested implanting GPS chips in such criminals.

In July 2005, Walsh attempted to assist the family of missing teen Natalee Holloway. Walsh was critical of the Aruban crime investigation and, along with television personality Dr. Phil McGraw, urged Americans to boycott Aruba. Walsh was a special guest on an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition that aired on August 14, 2005. The episode visited the home of Colleen Nick, who is the parent of Morgan Nick, a six-year-old girl who has been missing since 1995. Walsh has featured the Morgan Nick case on America's Most Wanted several times.

In 2003, John Walsh assisted in solving the Kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart on an episode of America's Most Wanted, where Ed Smart showed the picture of Brian David Mitchell's "Emmanuel" appearance. Mitchell's stepchildren saw the episode, identified him, and called the show. This led to the rescue of Elizabeth Smart and the arrests of Brian David Mitchell and Wanda Ilene Barzee. After Elizabeth Smart was reunited with her family, Walsh later met Elizabeth after her family invited him to meet her and mentioned his hand in finding her.

Walsh also hosted his own daytime talk show, The John Walsh Show, which aired in syndication (mostly on NBC-owned and affiliated stations, as NBC produced the series) from 2002 to 2004. However, since America's Most Wanted was still on the air at the time, he found it difficult to host both shows at the same time, so he asked then-NBC Entertainment president Jeff Zucker to release him from his contract. Zucker granted his request and cancelled The John Walsh Show.

By the late 1990s, many malls, department stores, supermarkets, and other such retailers had adopted what is known as a "Code Adam," a movement first started by Walmart stores in the southeastern United States. A "Code Adam" is announced when a child is missing in a store or if a child is found by a store employee or customer. If the child is lost or missing, all doors will be locked and a store employee is posted at every exit, while a description of the child is generally broadcast over the intercom system. "Code Adam" as a term has become synonymous with a missing child, and is a predecessor to an "Amber Alert", which serves as a system of broadcast-driven community notification.

John and Revé Walsh were portrayed by actors Daniel J. Travanti and JoBeth Williams in Adam, a 1983 NBC television film dramatizing the days following Adam's disappearance. The real Walshes appeared at the end of the broadcast to publicize photographs of other children who had vanished but were still missing. Later, a sequel called Adam: His Song Continues was produced and aired.

Some critics accuse Walsh of creating predator panic by using his publicity. Walsh was heard by Congress on February 2, 1983, where he gave an unsourced claim of 50,000 abducted and 1.5 million missing children annually. He testified that the U.S. is "littered with mutilated, decapitated, raped, strangled children," when in fact, a 1999 Department of Justice study found only 115 incidences of stereotypical kidnappings perpetrated by strangers, about 50 of which resulted in death or the child not being found. Critics claim that the Adam Walsh Child Resource Center, which started without funding in 1981, generated 1.5 million dollars annually following his testimony before the Congress. In fiscal year ending 2015, Walsh's private charity, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, received income from the following sources:

The Walsh family organized a political campaign to help missing and exploited children. Despite bureaucratic and legislative problems, John's and Revé's efforts eventually led to the creation of the Missing Children Act of 1982 and the Missing Children's Assistance Act of 1984.

After the murder of Adam, the Walshes had three more children: Meghan (born 1982), Callahan (born 1985), and Hayden (born 1994).

In summer 1981, Walsh was an official with Paradise Island Hotel and Casino in The Bahamas, and worked in Hollywood, Florida. He and his wife, Revé, had a six-year-old son, Adam. On July 27, 1981, Adam was abducted from a Sears department store at the Hollywood Mall (today Hollywood Hills Plaza), across from the Hollywood Police station. Revé had left Adam in the toy department at a model video game console at the Sears while she looked for a lamp. When she returned several minutes later, Adam was missing. Police records in Adam's case, released in 1996, show that a 17-year-old security guard instructed four boys to leave the department store. Adam has been thought to be one of them. Sixteen days after the abduction, his severed head was found in a drainage canal 120 miles (190 km) away from his home. The rest of his body was never found.

Walsh was born in Auburn, New York, one of four children born to John E. Walsh, Sr. and Jean Walsh. He graduated from Auburn's Our Lady of Mount Carmel High School in 1963. He attended the University at Buffalo, from which he graduated in 1967 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. He married Revé Drew in 1971. After college, the Walshes settled in South Florida, where John Walsh became involved in building high-end luxury hotels.

John Edward Walsh Jr. (born December 26, 1945) is an American television personality, and victim rights advocate, and the host/creator of America's Most Wanted. He is known for his anti-crime activism, with which he became involved following the murder of his son, Adam, in 1981; in 2008, the late serial killer Ottis Toole was officially named as Adam's killer. Walsh was part-owner of the now defunct National Museum of Crime and Punishment in Washington, D.C. He also anchors an investigative documentary series, The Hunt with John Walsh, which debuted on CNN in 2014.