Betty Nguyen (born September 1, 1974) is an American news anchor, currently CBS Miami morning news co-anchor. Nguyen has previously worked for NBC News, MSNBC, CBS News, CNN, and WPIX.

Betty Nguyen
Nguyen learning about endangered bat species
Born (1974-09-01) September 1, 1974 (age 50)
Saigon, South Vietnam (now Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
Alma materUniversity of Texas at Austin
OccupationBroadcast journalist
Years active1996–present
Board member ofHelp the Hungry, co-founder[1]
Children2
Websitewww.bettynguyen.org

Career

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Nguyen began her career as a morning anchor and reporter at KWTX-TV, the CBS affiliate in Waco, Texas.[2] Then, she was an anchor at KTVT-TV, the CBS affiliate in Dallas, where she covered numerous breaking news events, including the Columbia disaster.

Nguyen then joined CNN, where she anchored the weekend morning edition of CNN Newsroom. She spent six years at CNN covering major news events including the 2010 Haiti earthquake, presidential elections in Africa, Hurricane Katrina, and the death of Pope John Paul II. She also went on an undercover assignment in Myanmar.

Nguyen became a network anchor and correspondent for CBS News in 2010. She was news anchor for CBS This Morning Saturday, correspondent for The Early Show, and anchored the CBS Morning News.[2][3] During her tenure, she was also a substitute anchor on the weekend edition of the CBS Evening News and a Special Correspondent for Entertainment Tonight.[4]

Nguyen joined NBC in 2013. She anchored Early Today on NBC and later, Morning Joe First Look on MSNBC. She was also a correspondent for the Today Show.[5]

Nguyen was recognized by the Smithsonian Institution in 2007 as the first Vietnamese-American to anchor a national television news broadcast in the United States.[6] According to Maxim, she was named one of "TV´s 10 Hottest News Anchors" in 2008.[7] In 2011, she was listed as one of "The 10 Most Stylish Anchors & Reporters" by The Huffington Post.[8] Nguyen spent a short time as a freelance correspondent for E! Entertainment Network. She has hosted several specials and was featured as a reporter on episodes of Walker, Texas Ranger. She can also be seen in Spike Lee's When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts.

Nguyen became the new co-anchor of the PIX11 Morning News at WPIX-TV on June 19, 2017, succeeding Sukanya Krishnan, who left the station after 17 years.[9]

On February 17, 2023, Nguyen was named morning news co-anchor at WFOR-TV in Miami. Nguyen will join co-anchor Keith Jones, meteorologist Lissette Gonzalez and breaking news and traffic anchor Austin Carter from 4:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. starting March 13.[10]

Personal life

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Nguyen was born in Saigon, Vietnam. She is of Vietnamese and Scottish American descent. Nguyen and her family left Vietnam for the United States in April 1975 during the Fall of Saigon.[11][12] From a CNN videotape, she speaks about her father.[13]

He was an American serviceman who fell in love with a Vietnamese college student. They married and had me, a child who was given life, when so many were losing theirs in the war. We fled Vietnam, crammed into a packed C-130 cargo plane. It was stepping into the unknown. Nothing was guaranteed except that turning back was not an option. And that meant leaving behind my grandparents…As hard as it was, fleeing not only saved my life, it gave me a new one, in a place called America.

Nguyen grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, and attended the University of Texas at Austin. She was a cheerleader during her younger days and a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority in college.[14] She graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism.[15]

Nguyen is a fan of the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Mavericks, and Texas Longhorns.[16]

In July 2015 Nguyen announced she was pregnant with her first child. She gave birth to a son, Thomas, on December 15, 2015.[17] She also mentioned that she had previously suffered a miscarriage.[18] Her second son, Christopher, was born July 10, 2018.

Board membership and affiliations

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Awards

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  • 2003 Regional Emmy award for "Outstanding Noon Newscast"[19]
  • 2003 Great Women of Texas: Women of Influence Honoree[20]
  • 2003 Legacy of Women Award[21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "About us". Help the Hungry. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Betty Nguyen". CBS News. 7 April 2010. Archived from the original on 26 April 2010.
  3. ^ Ariens, Chris (6 April 2012). "Betty Nguyen Leaving CBS News". Media Bistro. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  4. ^ "#CelebsUnfiltered, Social Celebrities, Entertainment News, Photos, Videos, and Exclusives". WhoSay. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  5. ^ "TODAY Video - Latest TODAY show clips, news & video". TODAY.com. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  6. ^ a b "CNN Anchors & Reporters: Betty Nguyen". cnn.com. 2007. Archived from the original on 15 July 2007. Retrieved 11 August 2007.
  7. ^ Burchette, Jordan (18 November 2008). "TV´s 10 Hottest News Anchors". Maxim.com. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 21 November 2008.
  8. ^ Krupnick, Ellie (6 September 2011). "The 10 Most Stylish TV Anchors & Reporters (PHOTOS)". Huffington Post.
  9. ^ "Betty Nguyen Leaves NBC for WPIX".
  10. ^ Miller, Mark (17 February 2023). "Betty Nguyen Joins WFOR Miami And CBS News Miami". TV News Check. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  11. ^ Moran, Jaymie (May 2008). "CNN's Betty Nguyen". asiancemagazine.com. Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2009.
  12. ^ Kennedy, Kyle (19 March 2009). "CNN Anchor Turns the Tables, Tells Own Tale". TheLedger.com. Archived from the original on 29 March 2009. Retrieved 20 March 2009.
  13. ^ "CNN NewsNight Aaron Brown: Operation Baby Lift, aired April 29, 2005" (transcript). Transcripts.cnn.com. Retrieved 18 December 2006.
  14. ^ Fontenot, Rebecca (1 January 2009). "Word-Perfect". Texas Exes. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  15. ^ Do, Anh (25 November 2004). "Profile: Betty Nguyen". Nguoi Viet. Archived from the original on 7 November 2007. Retrieved 4 March 2007.
  16. ^ Haag, Matthew (6 June 2006). "CNN anchor loves her Mavericks". Txcn.com. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 11 August 2007.
  17. ^ Nguyen, Betty (14 July 2015). "Who says being pregnant during summer is miserable? | TODAY.com". Community.today.com. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  18. ^ Nguyen, Betty (14 July 2015). "Who says being pregnant during summer is miserable? | TODAY.com". Community.today.com. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  19. ^ Staff and Wire Reports (1 April 2004). "People Watch: Newsmakers". Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
  20. ^ "Betty Nguyen on Unusual Course | AsianWeek". Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
  21. ^ "TNJN - Asian American Association to host an evening with CNN anchor Betty Nguyen". tnjn.org. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
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