How TV Journalist Yasmin Vossoughian Built A Career On Curiosity & Connection

Written for HER Campus

Yasmin Vossoughian has built a career on asking questions that matter. As an NBC News correspondent and host of Here’s The Scoop, she’s known for leading insightful interviews and amplifying underrepresented voices. Off camera, she’s a mom of two, a yoga enthusiast, and a “thrill seeker” who embraces life to the fullest. “I’m goofy,” she tells Her Campus. “I talk about everything I’m not supposed to — religion, politics — and I make jokes when I’m uncomfortable.”

But behind her confidence is a story rooted in feeling misunderstood. “I grew up in the Hudson Valley … a brown girl in a pretty conservative town,” she says. Her Iranian American heritage, parents with accents, and a visible birthmark often made her feel like she didn’t belong. “I felt like I was always kind of a fish out of water.” That feeling is what shaped her approach to journalism. “I felt voiceless,” she says. “I wanted to tell stories of people that didn’t necessarily have a voice.”

Even as a child, Vossoughian was outgoing and curious about the people around her. “I love being around friends, telling stories, being silly and funny, and [being] the class clown,” she says. “I was friends with all the different types of groups of kids. I think I carried that into adulthood … I could empathize with people that didn’t look like me, didn’t talk like me, because I was friends with all types of people.”

That natural curiosity shaped her aspirations. “I literally knew I wanted to be a journalist as a kid,” she says. “My brother and sister would dress up like celebrities, and I would interview them.” Sunday nights spent watching 60 Minutes with her dad, seeing Diane Sawyer on TV, deepened her fascination with storytelling. “I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God, women can do this too!’”

But instead of studying journalism at Occidental College in Los Angeles (the liberal arts school had limited options for those interested in media at the time) Vossoughian double-majored in history and economics with a minor in theater. However, even in classes that seemed unrelated to journalism, she found creative ways to tell stories. “I would pitch my econ professor, like, ‘Can I do a video story instead of a 20-page paper?’” she said. “And I did.”

After graduation, Vossoughian went on to pursue media, but the reality of the industry hit hard. “I mean, it was awesome, but also super scary and terrible,” she says. Working as a production assistant for The Howard Stern Show, E! Entertainment TV, and the Style Network, Vossoughian covered everything from red carpets to runway shows… while earning just $21,000 a year. “It was hard,” she says. “I worked my tail off and made barely any money. I kept wondering, Am I doing the right thing?”

Then came 9/11. The attacks pushed her to reconsider what kind of journalism she wanted to do — and she decided to basically leave the entertainment world behind. “I took my little camera that I got for college graduation, went overseas to Iran, and put a piece together,” she says. “I felt like I had a responsibility to go overseas and do more international stuff. It goes back to my origin story, having access to a part of the world most people don’t … That was the story that launched my career.”

But as her career grew, so did her imposter syndrome. “I always feel like I should be getting you coffee,” she says. “It’s a woman thing, a woman of color thing … it never totally goes away.” Over time, though, therapy, exercise, and self-affirmation have helped. “The negative voice gets quieter every year,” she says. “There are still bad days, but I know I’ve worked hard to be where I am.” Her advice to young women going through something similar? “Recognize your value. You belong here. You deserve everything you have, and then some.”

Over the years, Vossoughian’s reporting has taken her from mass shootings in the U.S. to conflict zones in Gaza, and the emotional toll of the job isn’t lost on her. “I’ve seen the worst of humanity… and sometimes it’s here at home,” she says. “After covering Uvalde, I had just dropped my kids off at school. That stays with you.”

But the positives outweigh the negatives. On Here’s The Scoop, a daily podcast exploring the stories shaping our world — from global headlines to pop culture moments — Vossoughian gets to show another side of herself. “Podcasting lets me be myself,” she says. “I get to have real, human conversations, not just two-minute interviews.” One week, she’s interviewing Serena Williams, who made a goat noise when asked about being called “the GOAT,” and the next, she’s speaking with a former hostage survivor. “We want people to laugh, think, cry, all in one episode,” she says. “That’s what makes it special.”

Her days start early. “I hit the gym, make breakfast for my kids, walk the dog, and then hop on editorial calls,” she says. Afternoons are spent writing newsletters, recording podcasts, and prepping to anchor her show from 5 to 7 p.m. By the end of the day, she’s winding down with her family, and sometimes rewatching The Summer I Turned Pretty. (She’s team Conrad, by the way.)

If there’s one message Vossoughian wants young women to take away, it’s this: Don’t rush your path. “You have so much time to figure it out,” she says. “You have nothing to lose.”

Fans can catch Vossoughian in a special Election Day livestream starting around 11 p.m. EST Nov. 4 and into the morning of Nov. 5 on YouTube and NBCNews.com.