Steven Romo

{{Infobox person

| name = Steven Romo

| image = File:Romo winning award.jpg

| caption = Romo with the Excellence in Journalism Award

| height = 6 feet

| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1988}}

| birth_place = Dallas, Texas, U.S.

| occupation = Television journalist, writer

| yearsactive = 2009–present

| alias =

| status =

| title = News anchor

| family =

| spouse = {{marriage|Stephen Morgan|2022}}

| children =

| credits = NBC News journalist

HuffPost contributor

| website = {{url|stevenromo.com}}

| agent =

}}

Steven Romo (born 1988) is a news anchor, correspondent and writer. He is currently a New York City-based correspondent for NBC News and MSNBC.[https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/steven-romo-joins-nbc-news-as-correspondent/511266/ "Steven Romo Joins NBC News as Correspondent"], AdWeek, July 19, 2022 He also works as a contributor for HuffPost.[https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/trending/article/houston-tv-news-hirings-firings-departures-2021-16691208.php "Biggest TV news hirings, departures and one notable firing of 2021, by Charlie Zong"], The Houston Chronicle, December 14, 2021

Early life

Romo was born in Dallas and raised in the suburb of Duncanville, Texas. His father was a big rig truck driver, and his mother worked intermittently at grocery stores. He has described his childhood as marred by neglect due to his mother's mental health. Romo has written about his family's squalid home and animal hoarding.[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/animal-hoarding-cockroach-infestation-child-abuse_n_5d923fc3e4b0ac3cddaccff9 "I grew up hiding my family's shameful secret"], HuffPost, August 2019 He has also discussed his Latino heritage and his struggles with poverty.[https://www.adweek.com/tvspy/houston-reporter-talks-about-tough-upbringing-in-twitter-post/216519/ "Houston reporter talks about rough upbringing"], Adweek, August 2019 Romo has credited his childhood love of television and books as giving him the tools he needed to escape his difficult start in life.[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/animal-hoarding-cockroach-infestation-child-abuse_n_5d923fc3e4b0ac3cddaccff9 "How I escaped a childhood of animal hoarding and roach infestation to become a news anchor"], HuffPost, August 2019

In a personal essay for HuffPost, Romo wrote about his coming out experience. He also revealed more details about his dysfunctional family and childhood, including that he “dropped out” of school in the eighth grade before scrambling to get into college, which he successfully did as he’s stated elsewhere that he attended Texas A&M University.[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/steven-romo-stephen-morgan-houston-engagement_n_6262c1dbe4b0d077485f9173/amp "I Thought I Was Through With Secrets — Until I Revealed The One I Didn't Think Mattered"], HuffPost, April 2022

Career

File: Romo_outside_30_Rock.jpg

Romo was named among Kelly Clarkson, Rachel Zegler, Mark Consuelos, Alex Wagner, Ice Spice and others in Variety{{'}}s list of New York's power players in pop culture.[https://variety.com/lists/new-power-new-york-list-2023/ "The New Power of New York List of 2023"], Variety, October 2023

He was named Journalist of the Year by the NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists in 2024 for his “exceptional abilities, integrity and distinctive work that brought honor to the profession.”[https://www.nlgja.org/blog/2024/07/2024eij/ "Announcing the Recipients of the 2024 Excellence in Journalism Awards"], NLGJA.org, July 2024

Romo got his start in journalism while attending Texas A&M University, where he wrote for the student-run newspaper, The Battalion. In 2016, he joined KTRK Channel 13 in Houston, Texas.[https://tvnewscheck.com/article/96512/anchor-reporter-steven-romo-joins-ktrk/ "Anchor/Reporter Steven Romo joins KTRK"], TVNewsCheck, August 2016 He became an anchor for the station in 2018.[https://www.chron.com/entertainment/article/Ch-13-weekend-anchors-moved-to-weekday-slot-13184945.php "Ch. 13 weekend anchors moved to weekday slot"], Houston Chronicle, September 2018 Romo turned down a primary anchor role at KTRK in 2021 so he could move to New York City with his fiancé.{{cite tweet|number=1436397770621980704|user=stevenromo|title=I fell in love, got engaged and turned down the job to move across the country with him. Things I never thought wou…|date=September 10, 2021}} A short time later, he announced that he would begin working freelance for NBC News.{{cite tweet|number=1446186343210655749|user=stevenromo|title=Work update: Hi, Peacock. I'll soon be reporting & anchoring for @NBCNews, @MSNBC & @NBCNewsNow. I'm pretty pumped 🦚|date=October 7, 2021}} In the summer of 2022, NBC announced Romo would join full-time as the newest correspondent for the network based in New York City.[https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/steven-romo-joins-nbc-news-as-correspondent/511266/ "Steven Romo Joins NBC News as Correspondent"], AdWeek, July 19, 2022

Romo spent five years with the Disney-owned ABC station in Houston before making the move to NBC.[https://mikemcguff.com/2021/10/steven-romo-joins-nbc-news.html "Steven Romo joins NBC News"]{{Dead link|date=June 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, Mike McGuff TV News, October 2021 During that time, he appeared on ABC News national platforms discussing his reporting experiences, beginning with coverage of Hurricane Harvey and the storm's deadly aftermath.[https://www.yahoo.com/news/abc13-steven-romo-shares-emotional-215415819.html "Steven Romo shares emotional Harvey experience"], Yahoo! News, August 31, 2017 He also appeared on Good Morning America in 2019 alongside Michael Strahan and Sara Haines to support charities that fight poverty in the Houston area.[https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/video/houston-spotlight-wham-food-pantry-63261213], Good Morning America, May 24, 2019

Romo began writing for HuffPost[https://www.huffpost.com/author/steven-romo "Steven Romo Contributor Biography Page"], HuffPost in 2019 in addition to his work as a news anchor.

Romo started his career working at television stations across Texas. Prior to moving to Houston in 2016, Romo worked as an evening anchor in Tulsa.[https://www.houstonchronicle.com/entertainment/tv/article/Houston-TV-s-newest-on-air-hires-for-2016-10752631.php "Houston TV's newest on-air hires"], Houston Chronicle, December 2016[https://www.adweek.com/tvspy/ktrk-adds-reporter-from-tulsa-station/175168/ "KTRK adds reporter from Tulsa"], Adweek, August 2016[https://www.tulsaworld.com/news/local/education/green-country-spelling-bee-is-next-justin-timberlake-lurking-in/article_ef6d620b-11cf-55c0-afc8-8c0e17c02da0.html "Media figures become judges for Scripps Spelling Bee"], Tulsa World, March 6, 2015 While reporting in Oklahoma, he was nominated for two Emmy Awards for his work covering the 2015 Oklahoma State University homecoming parade crash.[https://emmyawards.tv/files/2012/12/2016-Nominees-0628.pdf "2016 Emmy Nominees List"], Emmy Awards, April 2016

He was interviewed for Dani Shapiro's Family Secrets podcast season three. The episode "Bug Dust" was released in 2020.[https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-family-secrets-30131253/episode/bug-dust-61044251/ "Bug Dust, Family Secrets Podcast"], iHeartRadio.com, April 2020

Romo's views on a variety of topics have appeared on Today,[https://www.today.com/life/essay-life/steven-romo-childhood-rcna155364?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR03p-zrQuz8IW1jluLE12HyFP2eQNLZ8SvdfhphjcVurrY7dj7qCaQX3_w_aem_AU2e-SbTZw5Cqvy-43k-gw7HdvUCY5FvnW7x50OsxSKhqQyofDGg6iFAxqo3LuGwQOlmw_Z-1TbMZaFDZojVsi7n "I was poor and gay — and my childhood revolved around hiding that"], Today, June 2024 The Daily Mirror,[https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/meghan-markle-prince-harrys-megxit-21310200.amp "Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Megxit"], The Mirror, January 2020 The Hill,[https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/in-the-know/325010-social-media-users-knock-design-for-jared-kushners-nyc "Social media users knock building design"], The Hill, March 2017 Cosmopolitan[https://www.cosmopolitan.com/politics/a9169799/kushner-skyscraper-internet-jokes/ "Jared Kushner is building a new skyscraper"], Cosmopolitan, March 2017 and more.

In March 2023, he appeared as a guest on Andy Cohen’s radio lineup with John Hill, broadcast on SiriusXM.

Personal life

File: Romo_and_Morgan_announcing_their_engagement.jpg announce their engagement.]]

Romo announced his engagement to Fox Weather meteorologist Stephen Morgan in July 2021. The pair reportedly met in Houston while covering Hurricane Harvey and began dating thereafter.[https://instinctmagazine.com/before-meeting-his-boo-romo-wondered-if-love-wasnt-in-the-cards/ "Before Meeting His Boo, Romo Wondered If Love 'Wasn't In The Cards'"], Instinct, August 2021[https://www.out.com/lifestyle/2021/8/03/tv-journalist-came-out-announced-engagement-weatherman "This TV Journalist Came Out & Announced Engagement to Weatherman"], Out, August 2021[https://www.chron.com/culture/tv/article/Houston-Steven-Romo-news-anchor-engaged-weatherman-16363582.php "Houston news anchor Steven Romo comes out in moving engagement announcement"], Houston Chronicle, August 2021[https://www.queerty.com/popular-houston-news-anchor-steven-romo-comes-20210804 "Popular news anchor stevenromo comes out”], ‘’Queerty’’, August 2021[https://www.eonline.com/mx/news/1295830/presentador-de-noticias-le-pidio-matrimonio-a-reportero-del-clima "Presentador de noticias le pidió matrimonio a reportero del clima”], ‘’E!’’, August 2021[https://www.dnamagazine.com.au/newsreader-comes-out-as-gay-announcing-engagement-to-weatherman/ "Newsreader Comes Out As Gay, Announcing Engagement To Weatherman"], DNA, August 2021[https://www.eonline.com/mx/news/1295830/presentador-de-noticias-le-pidio-matrimonio-a-reportero-del-clima "TV journalist comes out, reveals engagement to Texas weatherman. ‘Being gay saved me’”], ‘’Miami Herald’’, August 2021[https://www.schwulissimo.de/klatsch/gott-ist-liebe-nachrichtensprecher-und-wettermann "Verlobung zwischen Nachrichtensprecher und Wettermann"], Schwulissimo, August 2021[https://www.advocate.com/people/2021/8/04/houston-news-anchor-shares-hes-gay-marrying-weatherman-social "News Anchor Shares He's Gay and Engaged to a Weatherman on Instagram "], The Advocate, August 2021

The couple married on October 8, 2022 in Dallas, Texas at a venue on White Rock Lake in front of 125 guests. Their wedding also garnered a great deal of media attention, appearing in The New York Times{{'}} Sunday Styles section,[https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/21/style/steven-romo-stephen-morgan-wedding.html?smid=tw-share “The Tale of Steven and Stephen”], ‘’The New York Times’’, October 2022 People[https://people.com/tv/stephen-morgan-steven-romo-married/ "Fox Weather's Stephen Morgan Marries NBC News Correspondent Steven Romo: 'I Can't Imagine Living Without Him'"], ‘’People’’, October 2022 and more.

In an essay for HuffPost, Romo wrote about his experiences coming out as gay, and how his feelings of isolation due to his upbringing made him surprised that he was able to find a "yelling-from-the-rooftops" type of love.[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/steven-romo-stephen-morgan-houston-engagement_n_6262c1dbe4b0d077485f9173/amp "I Thought I Was Through With Secrets — Until I Revealed The One I Didn't Think Mattered"], HuffPost, April 2022

In a Today piece, Romo discussed his journey toward visibility saying, “Coming out freed me. I finally gave myself permission to meet more LGBTQ+ people, and I learned that queer joy is even more powerful than queer sorrow.”[https://www.today.com/life/essay-life/steven-romo-childhood-rcna155364?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR03p-zrQuz8IW1jluLE12HyFP2eQNLZ8SvdfhphjcVurrY7dj7qCaQX3_w_aem_AU2e-SbTZw5Cqvy-43k-gw7HdvUCY5FvnW7x50OsxSKhqQyofDGg6iFAxqo3LuGwQOlmw_Z-1TbMZaFDZojVsi7n "I was poor and gay — and my childhood revolved around hiding that"], Today, June 2024

Romo is also a friend of fellow broadcast journalist Anderson Cooper, according to social media posts[https://www.instagram.com/p/B5n2izmndRk/ ], Instagram, December 2019 and reporting from The Today Show.{{cite news|last=Hanson|first=Kait|title=Anderson Cooper reveals his best birthday gift... and it's so cute! |work=Today.com|url= https://www.today.com/parents/anderson-cooper-celebrates-birthday-cute-photo-baby-t220746}} June 2021{{cite news|last=Khan|first=Sana|title= Anderson Cooper Shares A Family Photo To Celebrate His 2-Year-Old Son Wyatt's Birthday |work= International Business Times |url= https://www.ibtimes.com/anderson-cooper-shares-family-photo-celebrate-his-2-year-old-son-wyatts-birthday-3488320}} April 2022

He has described himself as a mental and physical health advocate, stating in interviews his mother's death at 43 years old while he was in college sparked a desire to confront damaging habits early.[https://www.healthfitnessrevolution.com/fitness-interview-with-abc13s-steven-romo/ "Steven Romo's fitness interview"], Health Fitness Evolution, August 2019