Tracey Leong’s Winding Road Back Home to Cover the San Gabriel Valley
Tracey Leong spent years reporting the news in newsrooms scattered across the country before ending up exactly where she started: covering the San Gabriel Valley communities she grew up in, now as a reporter for NBC4 Los Angeles.
A San Gabriel Valley Upbringing
Leong was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley, a region east of downtown Los Angeles that she’s described feeling genuinely proud to now cover as a journalist. She attended California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona), earning her Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Studies.
Building a Career Across the Country
Rather than starting her career in her hometown market, Leong built her reporting résumé through a series of smaller and mid-sized markets spread across the country. She worked as an anchor and reporter in Humboldt County and Redding, California, before moving on to Baltimore, Maryland, and then Seattle, Washington — a path that, by her own account, sharpened her storytelling skills and deepened her belief in the power of local journalism to inform, connect, and create real change in the communities she covered.
Her stint in Seattle proved especially formative. At KIRO 7 News, she spent nearly four years working across reporting, anchoring, traffic coverage, and helping launch the station’s first “Live Desk,” a real-time digital news format. When she eventually left Seattle, she described the decision as bittersweet, saying she’d come to love the city and its viewers, but felt ready to step outside her comfort zone for a new challenge — a decision that would eventually lead her back to Los Angeles.
Returning Home to NBC4
Leong joined NBC4 Los Angeles (KNBC) as a reporter in 2022, bringing her career full circle back to the community she grew up in. Her reporting today focuses heavily on issues affecting the Asian American community, animal welfare, and social justice, alongside general assignment stories covering breaking news, local events, and the people and businesses that shape the greater Los Angeles area. Beyond her own station, her byline and reporting also run across NBC’s other owned stations nationally, including NBC Washington, NBC San Diego, and NBC Philadelphia.
Age and Personal Life
Leong’s exact birth date and age haven’t been made public. Outside the newsroom, she’s said she enjoys connecting with her community and exploring creative outlets, though she generally keeps further details about her personal life, including her relationship status and family, out of the public record.
Parents
Tracey was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley, California, growing up in a creative and highly supportive household. Her father was a professional television director who heavily guided and inspired her passion for the broadcasting industry. Her family recently experienced immense emotional loss, navigating the passing of both her father and her beloved 101-year-old grandmother. Tracey maintains a deeply tight-knit bond with her family members in her hometown of Arcadia. She has siblings, and she is a proud aunt who regularly volunteers at her nephew’s local elementary school career days.
Quick Facts
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name | Tracey Leong |
| Occupation | Reporter, NBC4 Los Angeles (KNBC) |
| Hometown | San Gabriel Valley, California |
| Education | B.S., Communication Studies, Cal Poly Pomona |
| Career path | Humboldt County/Redding, CA → Baltimore, MD → Seattle, WA (KIRO 7) → NBC4 Los Angeles (2022–present) |
| Reporting focus | Asian American community issues, animal welfare, social justice, general assignment |
| Notable prior role | Helped launch KIRO 7’s first “Live Desk” digital format |
FAQ
What does Tracey Leong cover at NBC4? She’s a general assignment reporter with a particular focus on stories affecting the Asian American community, animal welfare, and social justice, alongside breaking news across the Los Angeles area.
Where did Tracey Leong work before NBC4? She worked as an anchor and reporter in Humboldt County and Redding, California, followed by stints in Baltimore, Maryland, and Seattle, Washington, at KIRO 7 News.
Where is Tracey Leong from? She was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley, the same region she now covers for NBC4.
Where did Tracey Leong go to college? Cal Poly Pomona, where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Studies.
A Full-Circle Return
Tracey Leong’s path back to NBC4 runs through newsrooms in four different states before landing her back in the community she grew up in — a trajectory that’s given her San Gabriel Valley coverage a depth of local perspective that’s harder to fake than a hometown assignment alone might suggest. That range, paired with her focus on underrepresented community stories, has shaped a reporting career built as much on where she’s been as where she started.
