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As a Sideline Sports Reporter, I Wanted My Islam to Be Visible
On pursuing a career in sports journalism as a hijabi
The idea of being a sports broadcaster never crossed my mind when I was growing up. The scope of possible career options never went beyond teaching, medicine, law, or being “famous” without any true context as to what that means. Growing up Muslim in a non-Muslim society, I was never represented in media, at least not in a way that made being Muslim feel acceptable. I never saw images of women wearing khimar.
I chose my college major based on my father’s guidance; he said I should choose an area in which I excelled. I had a natural ability to write and speak, so I majored in communications, combining the two. At the time, I did not cover my hair, as I struggled with how others’ perceptions of me would change if I did. I also didn’t know just how impactful it would be once I did decide to be visibly Muslim.
As a junior in college, I took a sports broadcasting course taught by my uncle. He’d worked as a public address (PA) announcer and sports radio show host for as long as I could remember. He made our lessons less about the field of broadcasting and focused instead on the craft of interviewing: How can you make it conversational, entertaining?
I wanted to be a…
