Living Out Her Dream: Reporter Beverly White

For more than a decade,Texas born, Beverly White can be seen covering the news for Channel 4 on NBC .  There have been all types of changes in the broadcast industry including the almost extinction of the newspaper. With the onset of the recession the broadcasting industry took a hard hit, but White keeps the hope .White says, "there are jobs, just not as many. Newspapers are going out of business but NBC just hired 6 reporters”. So with that said, if your dream is to be a  reporter then strive toward that goal.

White has covered many stories over the years such as the El Nino weather system, the Northridge earthquake and there is nothing else she would rather do. White loves her job and loves the fact that she's not tied to a desk. Everyday is a different day, "it's beyond telling stories, it's about meeting new people", she says. A typical day starts at 3:30pm, except when there is breaking news. She goes to NBC headquarters and researches her assignment for the day. Then she heads out to the location where she shoots the story. The videographer then edits the piece and then she goes live at 5pm, 6pm 7pm, 11pm and then gets home around 1am.

White received her broadcast journalism degree from the University of Texas, Austin; and began her career at Texas at KCEN-TV (NBC) in Temple/Waco and KENS-TV (CBS) in San Antonio. She worked for WKRC (ABC) from 1985 to 1989. In Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky she anchored the morning newscast. As a member of the National Association of Black Journalist, you can find White as the president of the local Southern California Chapter. All in all, White likes to give back. One day she hopes to become a full time anchor and  go back to teach as well, "I love to teach", she says. She use to teach at Citrus College and University of Southern California.

For the woman who is living out her dream she doesn't go unnoticed. In 1997, LA's New Times magazine named her best local news reporter and Essence magazine named her " Live Shot Diva" in the April 2000 issue.  White was also honored with the Leadership Award from the California Legislative Black Caucus in 2008.

It's all about helping the students who want to pursue a career in broadcast. White's advice to students is , " become multimedia journalists, be prepare to compete, and embrace every opportunity given".
For those who don't know, being a reporter is not all glitz and glamour. There are a lot of broken marriages, moves from state to state and long hours. White is one of the lucky ones, she met her husband in Miami and he followed her to Los Angeles.
With a healthy relationship, a great career and a willingness to give back,  Beverly White is one classy lady and one to continue to watch.