Who : 1999 Graduate of Denton High School Hometown : Denton
Age : Old enough !
Catching Up with … Leila Rahimi
Story by Mario Zavala Jr . Photos Couretsy by Leila Rahimi
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What ’ s up ?
Leila Rahimi is an anchor , host and reporter for NBC Sports Chicago , the network that airs Cubs , White Sox , Blackhawks and Bulls games . She graduated from the University of North Texas in 2002 with a journalism degree , and has worked at Fox Sports Southwest , Fox Sports San Diego , CSN Houston , MLB Network , NBC Sports , and CSN Philadelphia . Leila ’ s been all over the country covering some of the biggest names in sports since leaving Denton .
But don ’ t take our word for it , here ’ s Leila in her own words …
Denton ISD : When did you know that you wanted to have a career as a sports journalist ? Leila Rahimi : When I was at Calhoun Middle School ! I was inspired by the Dallas Cowboys and started writing for the DHS Horseshoe starting my sophomore year .
DISD : You started out working behind the scenes and are now in front of the camera . What was that transition like ? LR : I always did a little of both . I knew the fastest way to get paid in TV was to work as a production assistant , the entry-level position in TV . You record games , take notes on the plays and run the teleprompter … things of that nature . Simultaneously , I worked “ on-air ” in college for KNTU , and later , I was hired to do weekend overnight traffic on KRLD radio , and then Sports Radio 1310-AM , “ The Ticket ,” while I was in school , all while working at Fox Sports Southwest as a production assistant .
DISD : You ’ ve done writing , radio and TV . Is there something that makes one harder than the others as a journalist ? LR : To me , radio might be the most difficult because you have to talk for hours at a time , and that ’ s your finished product . There ’ s no rough draft , and there ’ s no practice . You have to have massive amounts of knowledge and be “ on ” for a long amount of time !
DISD : Was there anything that you did at Denton High that helped prepare for your career today ? LR : Absolutely . When I wrote for the school paper and had great journalism advisers who encouraged me every step of the way . Coach Gary Fischer and Joey Florence helped teach me not only the game of football , but how to report on it and develop good relationships with