TV reporter comes out as trans on air: 'So excited for world to know Nora'

A television news reporter in Des Moines, Iowa, came out as transgender to viewers in her area this week and reintroduced herself on air as Nora J.S. Reichardt.

Speaking with KARE 11’s Eva Anderson, a former WOI Local 5 News reporter, Reichardt, 24, shared her name and pronouns on Thursday (6 October).

Reichardt has worked with Local 5 since July 2021.

“Today is special here at Local 5. We welcome back a friend and colleague. You have welcomed her into your homes for the past year, depending on her to cover the big stories and to bring you critical information,” Andersen said.

“Tonight, Local 5’s Nora Reichardt wants you to meet the real Nora, her true self.”

Reichardt explained to viewers that for a while, she didn’t know if she would be able to be publicly open, “at least not on air like this.”

“I didn’t know if there was a place and a space for me to do this sort of work that I’ve really come to love and enjoy while also getting to be myself while I do it,” she said.

Reichardt said that she had been thinking about her identity since she was in high school, but growing up in a rural area in Hanover, Minnesota, she “didn’t even have the language to describe” the feelings she was experiencing.

“I thought I was just depressed. I thought I was just anxious. And I’ve had those feelings almost as long as I can remember,” she added.

Reichardt said she slowly came into her identity as a transgender woman over several years. And in September 2021, she started counseling and the process of medically transitioning.

She also broke down for viewers the process of how she decided on her name, what it was like coming out to her family, and some of the treatments and medications she needed in her transition, as well as other details about her experience.

“There’s beauty in this process. And I wish that got discussed more,” Reichardt said.

She added: “What I find is learning to love my body, love me, and just the way I want to live my life; it’s the best act of self-actualization that I could ever imagine.”

Meet Nora J.S. Reichardt: Local 5 reporter comes out as transgender womanwww.youtube.com

According to News 5’s website, Reichardt went to Drake University in Des Moines, where she graduated with news and sociology and sociology degrees.

In August, ESPN journalist M.A. Voepel took to his Twitter to announce that he would use male pronouns.

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