A cloud continues to hover over Leila Rahimi’s departure from NBC 5 Chicago, and her agent shed little light on the matter Wednesday.
“That’s not a situation that I’m going to dive into,” said Boomer Dangel, vice president of broadcasting and new media at talent agency CSE. “Lousy endings, the [regional sports network NBC Sports Chicago], all of the changes there that happened at the same time. A lot of change is afoot.”
Rahimi told the Sun-Times on Tuesday that she and NBC 5 have “parted ways.” The station has yet to comment, and Rahimi did not address the situation, on Dangel’s recommendation, in her regular appearance Wednesday on The Score’s midday show with Dan Bernstein and Marshall Harris.
In fact, normally talkative insiders have been tight-lipped about what led to Rahimi’s departure. She hadn’t been on the air in a few weeks, and viewers noticed. Rahimi will continue to appear on The Score on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. But her next full-time job is to be determined.
“Leila’s reputation and what she’s been able to do in Chicago and beyond is going to allow her to bounce back quickly,” Dangel said. “I wouldn’t even say bounce back — continue to grow. She has grown in terms of her profile, and that’s only going to continue.”
Rahimi became the first woman at NBC 5 to serve as lead sports anchor in March 2022. Her departure follows that of Ruthie Polinsky, who’s hosting at the new Chicago Sports Network. Mike Berman is the only full-time sports anchor/reporter on staff.