Elizabeth Smart Hired as ABC News Contributor

Elizabeth Smart, who was kidnapped at age 14 and held by a Salt Lake City preacher for nine months in 2002 and 2003, has joined ABC News as a paid contributor, The New York Times reported.

According to an ABC spokeswoman, Elizabeth Smart will help our viewers better understand missing person stories from someone with the perspective to know what a family experiences when a loved one goes missing.

ABC said it has been talking with Smart about the position for quite some time, and she could appear on the network in the coming weeks.

The Elizabeth Smart hire was originally reported Wednesday by The Daily Beast, which asked, Other than fame -- as the victim of a horrifying crime -- what exactly are her qualifications?