It’s Laura Leslie’s last day on air for WRAL. Here’s what she’s doing next
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Laura Leslie departs WRAL after 14 years to lead a nonprofit newsroom as editor.
- She starts her new role on Sept. 29, 2025.
- Leslie has covered NC state government for more than two decades.
Today, Sept. 5, is Laura Leslie’s last day on air for WRAL, but she’s not leaving journalism or the Triangle.
Leslie, who has been capitol bureau chief for Raleigh’s NBC affiliate for 14 years, is moving to a new role as editor of NC Newsline, a state-focused nonprofit news outlet.
“We’re thrilled to have Laura onboard to lead Newsline,” Chris Fitzsimon, publisher and CEO of States Newsroom, said in a news release. “In North Carolina, few journalists can touch Laura’s knowledge of state politics. And at a point when this state is so pivotal in the national political landscape, Laura gives us confidence that we’ll continue to have the strongest coverage in North Carolina.”
Where is Laura Leslie going?
Leslie will begin her new role at NC Newsline on Monday, Sept. 29. She is replacing Rob Schofield, who retired in August after eight years as editor.
NC Newsline, headquartered in Chapel Hill and Washington, D.C., is part of States Newsroom, which has reporters in all 50 state capitals and Washington, D.C.
“I’m excited to join NC Newsline and honored to work with its award-winning staff,” Leslie said in a news release. “At a time when so many traditional media outlets are shrinking, States Newsroom is expanding its coverage of policy debates that affect readers’ everyday lives.”
Laura Leslie’s work at WRAL, WUNC
One of Leslie’s accomplishments while working at WRAL was helping launch NC Capitol, the station’s multimedia hub for coverage of state politics.
During her time at the station, she was named by The Washington Post’s political analysis blog, The Fix, as one of the country’s “outstanding politics reporters.”
“Laura has been an important contributor for several years, but we are proud of our NC Capitol Team already in place to provide North Carolinians the top notch state government coverage they have come to expect from WRAL,” WRAL/Fox 50 news director Mike Friedrich previously told The News and Observer in an email.
Before coming to WRAL, Leslie was capitol bureau chief at WUNC from 2004-11.
She is an Emmy Award-winning journalist and has also received accolades from the Associated Press, Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas and Public Radio News Directors Inc.
WRAL departures
Leslie is the latest journalist to leave the local television station this year, The News and Observer previously reported.
Several of the former WRAL anchors and reporters who have since taken new jobs in North Carolina and elsewhere had spent between six and more than 30 years at the station. A few of the longtime journalists who have left in 2025 include Gilbert Baez, Debra Morgan and Jeff Hogan.
