An Interview with Neda Iranpour of CBS8, San Diego
Neda Iranpour is an Iranian American anchor/reporter at one of the major local television networks and a familiar face of morning news in San Diego. She also has been covering major Iranian cultural events such as Charshanbehsoori and Sizdebedar for several years. I have been looking forward to conducting an interview with her for a while. Finally, I got a chance to have this chat with her about her personal life, family, background, Iranianness, and the effects of COVID-19 on her life and work.
-Ali Sadr
AS– Neda, I am grateful for this opportunity. I am sure many of our readers are familiar with you and have seen you on TV. Can you please introduce yourself?
NI– HI, I’m so honored to be in your magazine—thank you so much for this opportunity. I am a weathercaster, news anchor, and reporter at CBS8 and The CW in San Diego. I’ve worked in many cities like Yuma, Reno, Sacramento, and San Francisco covering major news stories and I’m so happy to be here in San Diego with my family now.
AS– Tell us about your family.
NI– I have a wonderful husband, Chris Rice, and a 2-year-old daughter, Roya Iranpour Rice. My mom also lives close to us and we are so lucky to see her almost everyday! She watches Roya every day while we go to work, so we owe her the WORLD! She’s even teaching Roya Farsi and her favorite food is khoresht e bamieh, thanks to my mom. They are best buddies!
AS– Are you a native of San Diego?
NI– I was born in Northern California in Los Gatos, but I grew up in Los Angeles until my mom’s company moved to Texas (when I was in high school.) While we lived in LA (Woodland Hills), my Mommon Joon lived in La Jolla. So we would visit her many, many times a year. We were lucky to spend summers in San Diego with her and I even lived with her for a while after college. I attended the University of Texas at Austin after going to high school in Lewisville, Texas. As soon as I graduated, I had a strong desire to drive west to San Diego to be with her. She passed away at age 90 and I miss her every day. Rooheshan Shad.
AS – Why did you choose to be a journalist?
NI– I always felt it was important to provide people opportunities to be the best they can be. But I knew there were huge populations where their opportunities are not equal. So I felt an ongoing purpose to help share their stories. I wanted people to be aware of what’s happening inside and outside of their neighborhoods. Perhaps seeing that not everyone is as fortunate might make people want to reach out to help. I also have a strong sense for truth. I want to be there as history unfolds so I could see it and share the real story. The truth is the only way we’ll be able to make the right choices.
AS – Why did you choose TV?
NI – TV was something I always watched as a young child and I still remember being impacted by major news stories and the live footage or videos on the screen. I think articles have a huge impact, too, of course, but I also think watching something unfold is memorable and impactful. Plus, since I’m now on a morning show, I’m able to add a lot more of my personality and hopefully share my own experiences to help brighten people’s day, make them laugh, or teach them something new.
AS – I have seen parts of your morning show (sorry, I am not a morning person), but I usually watch your posts on Facebook. Can you explain to me how it works and what’s involved?
NI – I’m actually the morning weathercaster, but I wear many hats. I anchor and cover weather from 4:30-5 a.m. on CBS8, then I cover weather from 5-7 a.m. on CBS8. I also cover weather and anchor from 7-9 a.m. on The CW San Diego. I also often cover special reports. So after 9 a.m., I often go on shoots. I work the super early morning shift, and I love it because our show is informative but also entertaining. I am always going to be a reporter at heart, I’m constantly curious, so I have a lot of news stories that I like to cover.
AS – When did you become an anchor?
NI – I started reporting, covering weather, and anchoring in Yuma, Arizona, back in 2004. So I’ve had nearly 20 years of experience doing multiple jobs and moving around the West Coast to work at different stations. Most people are anchors and reporters or weathercasters, but it’s rare for someone to do all three jobs. It wasn’t part of my initial plan, but it has worked out well for me to be versatile and interested in many subjects like politics, health, and the environment.
AS – As they say, you are “very Iranian” and cover “Iranian news.” (Actually, the first time I met you, you had come to cover Charshanbehsoori several years ago when your leg was in a cast.) Do you get any resistance or resentment from your co-workers or higher-ups?
NI – I don’t think so. I have tried to incorporate some of our beautiful culture in the news. But I wish I could share more than Charshandbehsoori and Nowruz. Obviously, we have so many lovely aspects of being Iranian; so anytime there’s a special news story, please let me know and I can try to add it to our local coverage.
AS – How has being an immigrant and an Iranian American affected your career?
NI – I think it has helped me greatly. Being a daughter of immigrants is a gift. I understand the special sacrifices it takes to move to a new country and learn a new culture, but still try to keep what you love from back home. I am so grateful to my parents for sharing our culture, language, food, and dancing so that I can also share them with people I meet. Also, I think it’s always important to approach news stories through open-minded eyes, and I learned that because of my parents and background. I can empathize with people of various backgrounds because mine came with its own set of unique challenges.
AS – The current pandemic forced everyone to change everything, from lifestyle to work. How did it affect your life and your work?
NI – I had to work a lot harder during a scary time. I was reporting during the first 6-8 months of the pandemic before they allowed me to come in-studio to anchor and cover the weather. So every day, especially at the beginning, I was worried I would get COVID-19 and bring it home to my family. The main goal for me and my husband was to NOT get COVID-19, so we could protect my mom and daughter. Since my mom is a part of our household, her health became my top priority. I wiped everything and wore a mask if there were people around us. I remember always smelling like Lysol wipes. I also remember this constant stress and worry. I no longer traveled with our photographers, so I would drive to reports on my own and work out of my Prius which turned into my office. It would get lonely, but I had the best photographers and editors and producers who I could turn to in the early morning hours. We all cared about each other’s health and safety. At times, if I was covering a protest or the arrival of a cruise ship, I would go home so worried that I was bringing COVID-19 back. So I would try to keep my mask on at home, too. But that’s really tough with a toddler. I would also get the COVID-19 test often, to be sure I didn’t have it and perhaps was asymptomatic. I did my best, but I hope to never worry about the virus in that way again.
AS – I myself—and I am sure our readers, too— appreciate your professionalism and sacrifices. I certainly hope we don’t have to go through another pandemic. It appears that we are coming out of this pandemic in a couple of months. Do you think that everything will go back to “Normal”?
NI – I hope we all learn positive lessons from the tough times we just endured. I hope our new “normal” includes continued enjoyment of the outdoors. I hope we appreciate and respect each other more. I would also love to see less traffic and less pollution, but that will require major changes. I hope we see less waste and fewer single-use plastics since people may not order food to-go as much. But I love outdoor dining and having picnics at the beach, so I think enjoying nature will keep going. I also enjoyed surfing more often during the pandemic and I think a lot of people picked up new healthy hobbies.
AS – How do you think the return to “Normal” will be for you, your family, and your work?
NI – I am so, so happy that my family is vaccinated and we can see each other. We are mostly going to parks instead of people’s homes, which is lovely! I’m also traveling a little more to see friends and family and that is so good for my heart and happiness. We used to travel and get together all the time, so I’m looking forward to more of that in our future. I also plan to keep surfing and doing outdoor activities—we’re so lucky to live in such a beautiful place.
I think work will continue to be very busy since news is always evolving and relevant. I’m part of a wonderful morning team at CBS8/The CW San Diego, so I am so grateful to have a job that I love! I don’t even mind waking up at 2:45 a.m. because this pandemic has especially taught me that people are counting on us. I don’t want to let our viewers down. I hope to continue to share the truth and help people make good choices for their lives; whether it’s related to weather or news, I’m here for you!
AS – Thank you, Neda, for your time. I wish you and your family all the best. Good luck with your work and stay safe. Paydar baashi!
