After eight years as a Reporter/Anchor, WCPO’s Whitney Miller says that she is now finally wearing her hair the way that she wants to.

“I just started wearing my hair in braids on air for the first time in my career,” Miller says.

Miller writes, you might ask, "What’s the big deal?" And you’re right. It shouldn’t be a big deal, but it is, at least it is for me and many of the Black female television reporters I know who are finally getting the chance to wear a style we’ve had to deem “vacation hair” for decades.

She says that there are plenty of people wearing natural styles all over television and social media. Pop culture has embraced the look. But, sadly, corporate America is slow to change, and TV news has been even slower.

Miller says that she loved her braids but that when she was in college and decided to pursue a career in broadcast journalism, she realized her braids had to go.

She said at one point, while anchoring the news in Texas, she decided to wear her hair natural on the air. Miller says that after he weekend shift, she received a text from her boss saying they liked the style but wished I would have consulted them before adopting it.

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel small and owned,” Miller said. “It’s frustrating. Ever since then I’ve always asked news managers about style changes. I’ve showed them pictures of other women so they have an idea of what they will be getting.”

She says during the pandemic, she wanted to change things up. “I reached out to my boss here at WCPO to ask about getting braids. I was shocked when she said I didn’t really need to ask. In fact, she was excited to see what it would look like,” Miller wrote.

“My news director even suggested I write about my experience wearing my hair in braids on TV for the first time in my career. I’m so blessed to work for a management team that embraces what makes their on-air talent different,” Miller added.

Maybe TV news is finally coming around.

Sure as hell took them long enough.

H/T WCPO