Emmy Victor
Morning Live Reporter
WRAL
Howard University, B.A.
Emmy Victor begins a new position as a morning live reporter for WRAL in Raleigh, North Carolina later this month, and she is one of our journalists to watch. This summer, she unexpectedly became a news story herself. While covering a police shooting for KCCI 8 News in Boone, Iowa, she was accosted by a white woman living in a trailer park who hurled profanity and racial epithets at the Victor. She didn’t flinch. Victor maintained her composure–in part because it had happened before.
Victor told the Des Moines Register that while she didn’t experience such extreme displays of racism in the metro area, she could be made to feel uncomfortable when trying to cover a story that required her to travel to the rural parts of Iowa. In those instances, it was not unusual to have potential interview subjects respond negatively to an African American reporter.
“It was something I had to get used to,” Victor said.
Victor has since left the news station. “Racism in the state did not help my decision to stay,” she told the Register. “I am glad that I maybe brought that to light. … There are still pockets of racism across the nation, even here in Iowa.”
The Path
Victor, who is from northern New Jersey, graduated from Howard University only two years ago. She served as campus editor for The Hilltop, for which accomplished journalists like Ta-Nehisi Coates also wrote. She also served as an anchor of a student professional development program with the National Association of Black Journalists in Washington, D.C. Victor had internships with WTTG FOX 5, CNN, FOX NEWS and the Associated Press. In this capacity, she has asked questions of influential leaders, such as Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
@EmmyVictorKCCI pinned tweet
Signed off the air for the last time! Today is my final day at KCCI. Thanks for having me, Central Iowa! pic.twitter.com/lu6SoIQrFy
— Emmy Victor (@EmmyReports) July 29, 2016
