With 15 years in broadcasting, Bonnie
Bernstein is one of the most recognizable and highly
respected journalists in her field. As a reporter and host
for ABC Sports and ESPN, she has a wide range of
responsibilities. During the college football season, she
serves as the sideline reporter for the Brad Nessler/Bob
Griese/Paul McGuire announce team on ABC and hosts
"Countdown to the Heisman". She is also part of
the hosting rotation for "NFL Live" and
"Jim Rome is Burning" and has covered Major
League Baseball for the Network. Additionally, Bernstein
covers the NFL for CBS/Westwood One Radio.
Bernstein’s second run with ESPN
comes after eight years at CBS Sports, where she was the
lead reporter for the NFL and the NCAA Men’s Basketball
Championships. She contributed features for The NFL
Today; hosted the Network’s Emmy-nominated anthology
series, Championships of the NCAA, and the NCAA
Women's Gymnastics Championships; and anchored SportsDesk
and At the Half, CBS’ New York-based studio
shows. Track and field, figure skating, and the U.S. Open
Tennis Championships rounded out Bernstein’s assignments
at the Network.
During the NFL season, Bernstein often
pulled "double duty," covering a Sunday game for
CBS and Monday Night Football for CBS/Westwood
Radio. In 2004, during Super Bowl XXXVIII, she became the
first reporter to serve as both a network TV and network
radio correspondent on the same broadcast. Bernstein has
covered five straight Super Bowls since joining the radio
announce team in 2001 and the Pro Bowl since 2003.
Bernstein first joined ESPN in 1995 as
its Chicago Bureau Chief, where she covered Michael Jordan
and the Chicago Bulls’ record-setting championship run.
She also filed reports for SportsCenter during the
Major League Baseball Playoffs and the NCAA Women's
Basketball Championships, and served as a correspondent
for NFL Countdown and College GameDay.
Numerous publications have documented
Bernstein’s work, including The New York Times, USA
Today, Sports Illustrated and TV Guide
and lifestyle magazines such as Glamour, Self, Men’s
Health and Celebrity Living. In October, 2007,
Bernstein was honored by New York Moves Magazine as
one of New York’s "Power Women," along with
such notables as Susan Sarandon, Sex in the City author
Candace Bushnall, model Lauren Bush and Ivanka Trump. In
2005, Bernstein was named to Jewish Women International’s
"Ten Women to Watch" list, an exclusive group
selected from the United States, Canada and Israel for
their professional achievements
Prior to ESPN, Bernstein made local
television history at the NBC affiliate in Reno, NV (KRNV-TV),
becoming the "Biggest Little City’s"
first-ever female weekday sports anchor. She began her
television career at WMDT-TV (ABC) in Salisbury, MD,
anchoring weekend news, and broke into broadcasting in
radio, as the news and sports director for WXJN-FM in
Lewes, DE.
Bernstein graduated magna cum laude
from the University of Maryland’s prestigious Merrill
College of Journalism. She currently serves on the College’s
Board of Directors. While at College Park, Bernstein was a
four-time Academic All-America selection (gymnastics) and
received the Thomas M. Fields Award for academic and
athletic excellence. Bernstein’s consulting firm, Velvet
Hammer Media, provides private coaching for aspiring
and working journalists and media training for corporate
executives.
Bernstein was born in Brooklyn, N.Y.,
and grew up in Howell, N.J. She presently resides in
New York City.