Today we’d like to introduce you to Paige Hubbard.
Hi Paige, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I always say I didn’t choose journalism; it chose me. I originally planned to be a cosmetologist; as I got older, I aspired to be an attorney. However, along my journey, God placed people and opportunities in my life that allowed me to realize that being a broadcast journalist was the perfect career choice. Oprah Winfrey is one of my biggest inspirations. Years ago, she held “The Life You Want Tour” in my hometown of Houston, TX. As I was sitting in the stands, I suddenly saw my face plastered across several monitors while Oprah was standing in front of them. During the tour, she always talked about how life will give you “signs” that you are following your calling. At that moment, I knew it was a sign. A few months later, while I was in college attending Texas Southern University, the communications department held a conference. There I met my mentor Nakia Cooper, a media powerhouse in the Houston market. We immediately connected, and I began interning for her digital platform, “News Wit Attitude.” I got my first internship at FOX 26 in Houston, Texas. When I stepped foot in that newsroom on my first day, I knew that’s where I belonged. It was an unexplainable feeling, but then I fell in love with the craft, and the rest is history.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I have faced many challenges pursuing my career. There have been setbacks, disappointments, and times I didn’t think it would happen. My father has been incarcerated my whole life. Although we have a healthy, loving relationship, my life wasn’t always easy, being raised by a single mother of four daughters. I had to hustle, grind and work for everything I had.
I’m very expressive, so when I discovered I wanted to be a journalist, I shared that dream with the world. Often, I was met with opposition and even faced people doubting me. I had family members who would tell me I wouldn’t be a journalist because of the way I spoke. But none of that mattered because I knew I was created to be great, and I didn’t let anyone nor their opinions or projections stand in the way of me chasing my dreams.
While I was in college, I was a very active student. I would go on air as an intern; I was the digital editor for my school’s newspaper and interned at radio stations and any local TV station that would accept me. At my graduation party, I remember my family and friends sharing their expectations of my success post-graduation. I felt like I had a huge burden of other people’s expectations and mine. I had no job after college, which sent me into a funk. It took me five months to find a job in my career field, and one day I got a phone call that changed everything when I got my first job fresh out of college at NTV Houston. Once I entered my career, there were challenges of learning the ropes, growing pains, and becoming comfortable with my craft. I’m thankful for it all because, in the end, it just makes me stronger personally and professionally.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a passionate journalist that currently works for CBS Austin. My authenticity sets me apart from others, and my ability to connect with anyone is a huge asset in my work. I am mostly known for covering the Maleah Davis story back in 2019. It was a story about a young girl who went missing under the care of her mother’s boyfriend.
Later, the man confessed to pushing Maleah too hard one day, causing her to hit her head, and she never woke up. Instead of contacting the police, the man panicked and made up a bogus story to cover up his tossing her body on the side of the road in Arkansas. I was a rookie reporter, but I was all over that story.
That’s where my social media following mainly came from—being a journalist is an incredible responsibility I have the honor of doing daily. We are the gatekeepers of information, so I never inflict any biased point of view and always strive to be fair and balanced. I give the public the facts and let them decide how to govern themselves with the information provided. My career has taken me from Houston to Beaumont and now to Austin. I’ve covered hurricanes, ice storms, a pandemic, socially unjust, and stories of joy and pain. I love what I do, and I don’t take it lightly.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
My mother gave birth to four girls. I am the second oldest and shortest of all my sisters, standing 4’11. A fun fact about me is that I’m left-handed. I’m an open book, so it’s hard to think of something people don’t know about me because I live out loud. However, being an extrovert, I like to keep some things private and to myself.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: The_paigehubbard_brand
- Facebook: Paige Hubbard
- Twitter: @THEPAIGEREPORT1
