unapologetically amplifying underrepresented voices
Aleah hordges, founder & ceo
For over a decade, I've worked as a local news journalist, navigating an industry where mainstream media has long been dominated by white men and white American culture. Time and time again, I found myself among the few minorities in the newsroom, fighting to ensure underrepresented and underserved communities weren't just heard, but portrayed with dignity, strength, and authenticity.
The question that echoed in my mind was, "If not me, then who?" And the answer was clear: Somebody's got to do it.
That realization fueled the birth of Vérité House, a boutique built to redefine mainstream media and elevate the voices that have been ignored for far too long.
As a Black woman, I have an unwavering love for Black people and Black culture, but I also recognize that our experiences, struggles, and triumphs are similar to those of other minority and Indigenous Peoples' communities. The fight for visibility, equity, and fair representation is not exclusive to one group. It’s a shared battle among those historically marginalized by mainstream narratives. Black, Brown, Indigenous, and other communities of color, including minority groups based on sex, religion, gender, physical and mental disabilities have all faced systemic exclusion, erasure and misrepresentation in media and beyond.
Our stories may have different cultural nuances, but they are rooted in the same truths—the need for ownership of our narratives, the power of authentic representation, and the urgency to challenge systems that have long silenced us. When one of us rises, we all rise.
This agency stands as a bridge, not just for Black voices, but for all historically excluded communities seeking to reclaim their power and tell their stories on their own terms. For generations, minority communities have been overlooked, their stories diluted, their narratives controlled, their impact minimized. We refuse to let history repeat itself.
Because diversity isn't just about presence, it's about power. Are our voices truly being heard, or are they just background noise? Are our stories being amplified, or are we just checking a corporate quota? Is action following representation, or is it just performative?
This agency was created to challenge, disrupt, and rewrite the narrative not as an afterthought, but as a force of influence. Because representation isn't just about being seen, but being respected, uplifted and remembered.
Are you ready to make an impact? Because we are.
Sincerely,
Aleah
the career behind the conviction
Before the Anchor Desk
FAME Magazine, Atlanta — Digital Host & Freelance Writer, 2013–2015 Aleah's media career started off-camera, before it was on-camera. As a digital host and writer for FAME Magazine, she wrote entertainment, lifestyle, and political feature stories and hosted and produced her own YouTube show for the publication. It's where she first learned to find a story, write it, and present it — the exact combination she'd spend the next decade building on in local news.
A Decade in Four Newsrooms
From there, Aleah's path ran through four newsrooms in four markets, each one adding a different piece of the skill set the agency is built on:
WKRC (CBS) in Cincinnati, Ohio — Weekday Morning News Anchor, 2022–2026 Co-anchored Good Morning Cincinnati from 4:30 to 10 AM on weekdays, conducting live interviews in-studio and in the field on a wide range of topics. From politics and statewide affairs with Vice President of the United States and former Ohio Senator JD Vance, to entertainment appearances with Saturday Night Live comedian and actor Jay Pharoah and Atlanta actor and comedian Desi Banks. Aleah pitched and launched the station's TikTok account in May 2023. It's since grown past 24,900 followers. She founded and mentored a formal media partnership between WKRC and Oyler School of Media Arts, and emceed community events on the station's behalf.
WISH (CW) in Indianapolis, Indiana — News Reporter/Anchor, 2019–2022 Enterprise daily stories from start to finish — meaning she found the story, pitched the story to the newsroom and developed it on her own from shooting, writing and editing. She fronted live reports out in the field, including the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, riots following the death of George Floyd that swept national headlines and behind the scenes of the Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and served as fill-in anchor for assigned newscasts.
WTKR (CBS) in Norfolk, Virginia — News Reporter/MMJ, 2017–2019 Worked as a multimedia journalist and enterprised daily stories. A MMJ is finding, shooting, writing, and editing every story oneself before it airs. Aleah covered local news in Hampton Roads, a major metropolitan and coastal region of Southeastern Virginia and the Outer Banks of North Carolina. She fronted live reports across assigned newscasts, including the aftermath of Hurricane Florence in 2018 while on the grounds at the United States Coast Guard Air Station in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Aleah also took the initiative to grab an impromptu interview with actor and political activist Danny Glover at the 2018 NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner.
WLUC (NBC) in Marquette, Michigan — News Reporter/MMJ/Anchor, 2015–2017 Continued that same solo-MMJ model, Aleah covered four counties as the Houghton/Hancock Bureau Reporter, a remote and self-starter position in local news. Covering the severe lake affect snowfalls in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, she investigated and fronted live reports with little backup, served as fill-in anchor, and interviewed Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore during her time at the station.
Along the way: a 2018 Emmy nomination from the National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter within the Information/Instructional–Feature/Segment/Series category on the do’s and don’ts when being pulled over by local police, a 2016 Michigan Association of Broadcasters First Place Award for Best Investigative Story on motorists legally carrying firearms in the state, and a Cum Laude degree in Mass Communications from Savannah State University. Aleah was a division one track and field scholarship athlete during her matriculation. She's now a member of the National Association of Black Journalists and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and formerly served as Public Relations Chair for Black Sports Professionals Cincy.
perception isn’t reality—but it decides what reality gets funded, hired and believed.
Every story a newsroom doesn't tell is a story an investor, a customer, or a future employee never hears either. That's the actual cost of the coverage gap — not just visibility, but opportunity.
The businesses filling that gap aren't waiting for permission. They're already doing the work. Ours is making sure their story gets told.