Leyna Nguyen

From humble beginnings in a small village of Dong Ha, Vietnam, to breaking barriers in mainstream media, Leyna Nguyen continues to inspire others with her story of perseverance and determination. She and her family escaped their war-torn country in 1975 and resettled in Minnesota. As a little girl, she dreamed of becoming a news reporter and despite the odds, became an award-winning journalist in the second-largest television market in the country. 26 years and 4 Emmy Awards later, Leyna started her own company, LeynaNguyen.net to help businesses and people navigate the media. Leyna also runs Love Across the Ocean (LATO) a 501 (c)(3) organization that benefits children and families in Vietnam and assists refugees in Southern California. Leyna made broadcast history by becoming the first newscaster to anchor the news on two stations in the same market, with the unprecedented Viacom-owned duopoly of KCBS and KCAL-TV, and was the first Vietnamese-American primetime TV news anchor in a major television market. Leyna has trained Los Angeles law enforcement officials and business leaders on how to work with the media as well as mentored aspiring journalists and helped professionals master the art of communication. Before coming to Los Angeles, Leyna was a news anchor/reporter for NBC-affiliate KCRA-TV in Sacramento where she also hosted a quarterly program on Asian-American issues and she started her tv career in Augusta, Georgia anchoring the news on CBS-affiliate WRDW-TV. She has appeared in over 35 television shows and movies such as NCIS, Dexter, Austin Powers, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Leyna has received numerous awards and accolades including YWCA Woman of the Year, AREAA Humanitarian of the year, 25 Most Influential Vietnamese-Americans in 25 years, and the California State Legislature's Woman of the Year for her philanthropic work. Leyna hosts podcasts called "Consenting Adults" and "Leyna Nguyen Unscripted," and continues to volunteer her time helping organizations that benefit children and underprivileged families.