An Iowa news reporter has come out as a transgender woman during her local newscast.
Nora J.S Reichardt, a multi-skilled journalist for Local 5 News in Des Moines, Iowa, re-introduced herself to the community on the identical day she legally modified her name.
“I didn’t know if there was a spot and an area for me to do that type of work that I’ve really come to like and revel in, while also attending to be myself while I do it,” she said during her segment.
The 24-year-old explained that she had considered her gender identity since highschool, but growing up in a rural area and with society not being as open with gender because it is today, she was unable to even find the words to specific her feelings.
Reichardt says that she realized something was unsuitable after she began working as a reporter and didn’t “connect” with the person on the screen.
She began hormonal treatments and the medical transition in Sept. 2021.
“There was an honest span of time where everyone in my life functionally knew me as Nora, apart from the viewers at home,” Reichardt said.
Reichardt stepped away from work before making her announcement to the viewers at home to make sure she could accomplish every part she desired to for the transition before returning and breaking the news.
“It’s hard to explain the way it feels to finally share that,” Reichardt said on Twitter. “For a very long time, my very own body felt foreign and unsuitable to me, and transitioning has been the primary time I’ve felt like myself in my 24 years of life.”
She added that she’s the person she was before but now’s noticeably happier, not only from her recognition but in addition to the people in her life.
In accordance with News 5’s website, Reichardt attended Drake University, where she graduated with degrees in news and sociology.
ESPN journalist M.A. Voepel announced on Twitter in August about his transition and that he would use male pronouns from then on.