Utah Station Hires State's 1st Black Anchor

At a time when diversity among broadcast and cable news anchors appears to be on the wane, or barely exists in places like, say, um, Utah, 27-year-old Nadia Crow's recent move represents a bit of good news. Suggested Reading ‘Sinners’ Releases in Black American Sign Language. Here’s What That Means A Burger King Employee Throws…

At a time when diversity among broadcast and cable news anchors appears to be on the wane, or barely exists in places like, say, um, Utah, 27-year-old Nadia Crow's recent move represents a bit of good news.

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She became the first regular African-American anchor at Utah's KTVX-Channel 4 and in the state, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. While making history, she's also fulfilling a dream. Crow, who grew up in Chicago, has also worked in Indiana and Iowa.

"Iโ€™ve always wanted to do this," said Crow, whoโ€™s living out her dreams at KTVX-Channel 4. "The only thing Iโ€™ve ever really wanted to be is a TV news anchor and reporter."

Other kids watched cartoons; Crow watched "20/20" and "Oprah."

"When we lived in Norfolk [Va.], there were black females in TV news who were good role models," she said. "And then when we moved to Chicago, you only had a few, even though Chicago is such a big city and itโ€™s so diverse."

Given that Utah is 80 percent white, 13 percent Hispanic and 2 percent Asian, according to the latest census data, it's not really a surprise that it took until 2013 for the state to hire its first regular black anchor. Indeed, the station is in the midst of rebuilding after undergoing a series of ownership changes, staff turnover and layoffs.

"I knew it would be a challenge coming here with the struggles theyโ€™ve had, but chaos creates opportunity," she said. "So I looked at it more as a challenge. And knowing that I would be the first African-American anchor was also a challenge that I wanted to take on."

Read more at the Salt Lake Tribune.

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