Jay R. Bradley
Journalist • Media & Community Engagement Professional
About
About
Well, hello there! I’m a writer, multimedia journalist, event organizer, and web designer born and raised in New York’s beautiful Southern Tier.
My goal is to bring people together through my work, connecting them to new experiences and important knowledge for their community.
During my years in journalism, I’ve covered everything from hotly debated developments, dramatic and controversial local elections, straining transportation infrastructure, passionate micro-communities, how COVID-19 upended our love lives, fights to expand legal anti-discrimination rights, and dramatic courtroom pleas for untested medical trials.
Using my unique experiences and connections, I strive to bring a globally informed outlook and hyperlocal focus to my work, directly engaging with local culture every step of the way.
I have won or been named a finalist for multiple regional and national journalism awards for pieces produced by myself or with a team of other great reporters. Most recently, I won my first award as a professional at the 2024 Keystone Media Awards.
Outside of journalism, I’ve led multiple grassroots esports initiatives, and helped bring a multitude of events to life in the space.
When I find the time, I love playing music, gardening, swimming, traveling to new cities, and having very strong opinions about food.
I’m a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Ithaca College’s Roy H. Park School of Communications with a degree in Journalism and minors in website programming and business administration, and a proud Eagle Scout.
What I've Worked On
Starting near home, I contributed to many outlets in the Southern Tier region, including as a part-time Multimedia Journalist at NewsChannel 34, an intern at WBNG 12 News, and occasionally freelancing for outlets like The Ithaca Times, and WRFI-FM.
At Ithaca College, I led one of the most award-winning and productive periods in the history of WICB 91.7 FM as News Director and co-founded Ithaca College Esports, where I worked with a team to build a 300+ member organization with a seven team roster, slate of casual events, livestreams, and charity broadcasts raising over $3,000 for local nonprofits.
In 2022, I was hired as the first reporter for Lehigh Valley Public Media’s LehighValleyNews.com digital news initiative. While there, I covered the East Penn beat, spotlighting the rapidly growing suburban region of ~64,000, covering its massive warehouse and commercial developments, close and passionate local elections, the rise of high school esports, and questions of what they want their community to become.
Who I've Worked With
Featured Portfolio
Lehigh Valley Public Media:
- Managing the Lehigh Valley’s warehouse boom: The search for solutions (2024)
- Investigative local development news about the warehouse boom upheaving the Lehigh Valley as lawmakers and officials scramble to act and plan to address the growing pains
- How Harrisburg is responding to the wave of warehouse construction (2024)
- Investigative story on state and local political intersections on the development boom for warehouses in the Lehigh Valley
- Parkland alums: Disgraced theater director was verbally abusive, interfered in relationships (2024)
- Criminal justice follow up expanding on alleged misconduct by theatre director put on leave by district that maintained silence on the issue
- Upgrades to Hill-to-Hill Bridge will take 4 years, cost more than $75 million (2024)
- Development reporting spotlighting transportation study decision-making on key traffic corridor for the region and historic architecture
- Court denies desperate patient’s bid for controversial group’s cancer treatment at St. Luke’s (2024)
- Courtroom coverage of lawsuit regarding ability to pursue unproven treatment against the hospital’s wishes, echoing controversy seen during the COVID-19 pandemic
- REVIEW: Gen Z, and the weather, make way for a Big Time celebration at Musikfest(2024)
- Event coverage and music review for headliner in locally produced music festival
- Emerging high school esports highlight teamwork, skills — and a new horizon of competition (2023)
- Local in-depth sports/education feature about a new subculture emerging from the high school sports ecosystem, as different organizations vie to be the leader in Pennsylvania
- Wide-ranging non-discrimination legislation introduced to Lehigh County would establish new protected classes (2023)
- County government reporting spotlighting arguments for wide-ranging new social legislation that was eventually passed following passionate debate and multiple rewrites
- Outside funding, accusations put spotlight on East Penn School Board candidate slates (2023)
- Local election news, as significant external funding and deception bring dramatic reactions to a school board election in a politically contested region
- ‘A cause of frustration’: Truck traffic has tormented Alburtis. Is relief in sight? (2023)
- Investigative local development news about a small town wracked by development and infrastructure strains occurring just outside of its borders
- Phillies prospect Daniel Brito returns to field where he nearly lost his life (2022)
- Sports piece from the road about a MiLB player making a dramatic recovery and seeking to continue pursuing his baseball dreams
Ithaca Week & Ithaca College Journalism:
- Birders in Ithaca and Beyond Take on The Great Backyard Bird Count (2022)
- Science Feature
Ithaca Voice
- ‘Smash Lab’ celebrates a year of esports competition and community in downtown Ithaca (2022)
- Esports feature
WLVR-FM:
- Emerging high school esports highlight teamwork, skills — and a new horizon of competition (2023)
- Esports / High School Sports Audio Feature
WICB’s Ithaca Now:
- Young Love in the Age of COVID (2021)
- In-Depth Feature Documentary
- Finalist, CBI National Student Production Competition, Best Documentary (Audio)
- Young Love in the Age of COVID (2021)
- Reopening Ithaca (2021)
- Themed news magazine program
- Led collaboration between Cornell and Ithaca College reporter teams
- Edited, curated final episode and acted as contributor
- Produced Episode, Ithaca Now April 4 (2021)
- Ithaca Now under my leadership won SPJ Mark of Excellence Region 1 – Best All-Around Newscast and New York State Broadcasters Association, Outstanding College Public Affairs Program/Series
- What’s Going on with Ithaca College’s Faculty Cuts? With Alexis Manore of The Ithacan (2021)
- Explanatory Interview with Newspaper Correspondent
- Interview: Graeme Joffe (2019)
- Interview for Book Preview
- Local Religious Groups Give Community in the Pandemic (2020)
- In-Depth Feature
- Finalist, Syracuse Press Club Student Radio/Podcast Feature Story
- Produced Episode, Ithaca Now April 4 (2021)
Radio Newscasting on WICB:
TNT Radio Productions
- The Museum (2021)
- One-Act Play, Written, Directed, & Produced
Lehigh Valley Public Media:
- Story of the Day: What would you do with $633 million dollars?
- Social Media Short
- Story of the Day: Lower Mac pushes back against community-built playground and basketball court
- Social Media Short
NewsChannel 34
- Dick Stack Field Donation to Celebrate Dick’s Sporting Goods Open (2021)
- Cable Package
ICTV Reports
- Efforts in Tompkins County Hope to Fuel Electric Cars
- Long Cable Package
- The Impact of COVID-19 on Local Music (2020)
- Long Cable Package
Other
- Ithaca Week: Cornell Electric Vehicles Feature (2022)
- WENY NY Local Ithaca: Unified Sports for Students with Disabilities (2020)
- Education & Accessibility Feature
- Binghamton Food Rescue: Learn More About BFR! (2020)
- Advertising / Feature
- With Lily McCauley
Events:
- Upstate Melee Champions Circuit & Finale
- Co-lead organizer on innovative grassroots event circuit of established monthly and annual events throughout Upstate New York
- Finale event featured special championship tournament, beginner bracket, last chance qualifier, multiple live streams
- Over 750 individual circuit participants, over 100 finale event entrants
- “Frosty Fridays” Grassroots Online Divine Knockout Weekly
- Tournament organizer, stream production, graphics production
- Ithaca College Esports ‘Charity Power-Up!’ Nonprofit Fundraising Stream (2020-2022)
- Produced stream overlays, ran segments and schedule with team
- Upstate Smash Bros. Tournaments in Southern Tier NY
- Lead TO for various events in the Greater Binghamton area and with Ithaca College Esports
Following the Office of Campus Recreation’s official donation on May 17, we are happy to announce through 36 hours of streaming, we raised $1,031 for @STAPInc
HIV/AIDS, harm reduction, and community healthcare services. Thank you so much to all who took part and watched! pic.twitter.com/p2kpR4asy0— Ithaca College Esports (@IthacaEsports) May 24, 2022
- AudreyHiggins.com
- Portfolio website for visual artist Audrey Higgins
- UpstateSmash.com
- Website gathering resources, writing, and history on Upstate New York’s Super Smash Bros. competitive scene
- JayRBradley.com
- You’re looking at it!
- IsaiahFitzhugh.com
- Commissioned portfolio site for YouTuber ThaGreatIsaiah (currently offline)
Awards
- Winner – Keystone Media Awards, Division II Best Sports Feature (2024)
- “Emerging high school esports highlight teamwork, skills – and a new horizon of competition”, WLVR 91.3-FM
- 1st Place – Syracuse Press Club Student Radio/Podcast Feature Story (2023)
- “Electric Vehicles for Earth Day”, Ithaca Now 4/3/2022
- Award of Excellence – BEA Festival of Media Arts, Radio Feature Reporting (2023)
- “Electric Vehicles for Earth Day”, Ithaca Now 4/3/2022
-
Runner-Up – SPJ Mark of Excellence National Competition – Best All-Around Newscast (2021)
- Ithaca Now, 4/4/2021
- Winner – SPJ Mark of Excellence Region 1 – Best All-Around Newscast (2021)
- Ithaca Now, 4/4/2021
- Finalist – SPJ Mark of Excellence Region 1 – Best All-Around Newscast (2020)
- Ithaca Now, 7/19/2020
- Winner – New York State Broadcasters Association – Outstanding College Public Affairs Program/Series (2020)
- Ithaca Now, 9/27/2020
- Finalist – Syracuse Press Club Student Radio/Podcast Feature Story (2020-2021)
- “Local Religious Groups Give Community in the Pandemic”, produced with Celestina Beakes
- 3rd Place – CBI National Student Production Competition Pinnacle Awards, Best Documentary Audio (2020-2021)
- “Young Love in the Age of COVID”, with editing help from Selin Tuter and Himadri Seth
- Eagle Scout (2018)
- President’s Scholarship – Ithaca College (2018)
- Jessica Savitch Scholarship – Ithaca College (2020)
- Oracle Honors Society (2019)
- Phi Kappa Phi (Nominated) – Ithaca College (2021)
- Lambda Pi Eta – Ithaca College (2021)
Resume
