YNN.com

Senior Reporter/Field Anchor

Bill is a two-time Emmy winner, with 30 years experience covering Central New York. He was News Director at WHEN Radio, then WTVH-TV, and for six years was Senior Reporter at WIXT. Most-recently Bill was News Director of WSYR radio in Syracuse.

Videojournalist

Brad is the weekday morning reporter at YNN and he’s the face many Central New Yorkers wake up to each day. Brad comes into work at 3:30 a.m. and many times he’s the first on the scene of an overnight or early morning breaking news story. He has several years of live shot experience and he’s able to gather facts quickly and deliver information smoothly and accurately to viewers in a matter of minutes. In addition to covering breaking news, Brad usually has a good feature story or previews an upcoming event each morning to help you start your day with a smile.

In addition to his regular routine, Brad can be found at the anchor desk or in the YNN traffic studio. Brad’s wealth of local news and sports knowledge make him ideal to cover the events that matter to Central New Yorkers most. Some of Brad’s favorite assignments include following the Syracuse University basketball and football teams and their fans during big games and post season tournaments. Brad has followed SU fans to Buffalo, New York City, Pittsburgh, Boston, Worcester, Cleveland, Memphis and Salt Lake City for the NCAA basketball and Big East Conference tournaments. He also followed football fans to the 2010 New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium and the 2012 College Classic at MetLife Stadium. He serves as our Mohawk Valley reporter for our award winning “First and 10” high school football show.

Brad started at YNN in July of 2004 in our Mohawk Valley newsroom. He’s from Herkimer County and a graduate of Frankfort-Schuyler High School, Herkimer County Community College and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

In his spare time, Brad enjoys spending quality time with family and friends and staying in shape.

Brad is always on the lookout for the latest in technology and social media.

You can send him ideas or find out more about where each day takes him at twitter.com/BradInCuse.

Videojournalist

Sarah joined the YNN team in 2010 as a reporter for the Mohawk Valley Newsroom, and is now based in YNN’s main Syracuse newsroom. She's excited to be a part of the news team she's watched since her days as a student at Syracuse University, where she earned a Bachelor's Degree in Broadcast Journalism. Her interest in the news began early -- before reporting for SU's CitrusTV, she anchored her high school and middle school newscasts.

Sarah began her career reporting and anchoring for WICZ-TV in Binghamton where she covered stories ranging from the shootings at the American Civic Association to the massive layoffs at Lockheed Martin's Owego plant.

When not keeping up to date on the latest news, Sarah enjoys traveling, reading, watching movies, and hearing from members of the community. Feel free to let her know about the issues important to you by e-mailing sarah.blazonis@ynn.com.

Videojournalist

Brian Dwyer is a videojournalist in our Watertown newsroom. Brian comes to YNN from WSTM in Syracuse where he was a member of the sports department. Brian, a Central New York native, earned his bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications and Broadcasting from SUNY Oswego.

Videojournalist

Katie Gibas joined the YNN team in February of 2009 in the Watertown newsroom. She now works at YNN Headquarters in Syracuse as a dayside reporter and health specialist.

Katie attended Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, where she graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Broadcast Journalism. She double minored in Management and in Conflict Resolution.

Before she joined the YNN team, Katie held numerous internships at stations in Buffalo, Syracuse and Binghamton. She also interned with NBC in Beijing, China for the 2008 Summer Olympics. She also worked with the Buffalo Bills NFL football team in the Media Relations Department.

Originally from Buffalo, Katie is thrilled to be in Upstate New York. In her spare time, she enjoys skiing, traveling, cooking, figure skating and watching football and hockey.

Videojournalist

Candace Hopkins joined the YNN team in April of 2011 as a reporter in the Oswego newsroom, and is now based in our main Syracuse facility. She comes to New York from her native state of Rhode Island, where she spent two years as an assignment editor at WPRI-TV in Providence.

Candace attended American University in Washington D.C. where she received her bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism, with a minor in history. During college she spent a summer teaching English to students on the island of Mauritius, a semester abroad in Ireland, and she traveled to Lebanon.

In her spare time, you’ll find Candace cheering on her favorite sports team, the Boston Red Sox, traveling, and skiing. You can email her at candace.hopkins@ynn.com with story ideas and comments. She looks forward to hearing from you!

Videojournalist
Melissa joined YNN in July 2011 as a reporter in the Binghamton newsroom. She is originally from Pennsylvania, and is very excited to start her reporting career in the Southern Tier.

Melissa graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University in May 2011 with a bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism. During her time at SU, Melissa was an active member of the student television station Citrus TV, where she anchored weekly live newscasts and hosted the morning talk show "Juice and Java." Melissa also completed internships with WFMZ-TV and B104FM in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

In her free time, Melissa enjoys traveling, shopping, and attending concerts.

You can send her news tips or comments at melissa.kakareka@ynn.com.

Videojournalist

Tamara joined the YNN news team in 2008, and has since enjoyed covering breaking news and local stories all over central New York.

She comes to us from New York City, where she earned a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University. A native Californian,
Tamara received her bachelor’s degree in sociology from UCLA. She began her career as a reporter for UCLAtv, and spent time as a field producer for documentaries before moving to the east coast.

Tamara has covered several high-profile cases, including the murder trials of Blazej Kot and Randy Thibeault. She was part of the team providing around-the-clock coverage of the Binghamton ACA shooting and aftermath, and is a recipient of a Syracuse Press Club Award for her story on Ithaca’s film history.

Elyse Mickalonis joined YNN in January 2012 as a Videojournalist in the Binghamton newsroom.

Elyse is a graduate of the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University, receiving her M.A. in Journalism in 2011. She also holds a B.A. in Journalism from the State University of New York at Purchase College. In 2011 she finished MADE IN DETROIT, a mini-documentary on Detroit’s automotive industry. In 2010 Elyse completed a documentary titled SURVIVING AMERICANA: EAST COAST DRIVE-IN MOVIE THEATERS. In 2009, she was honored with the Mike McNickle Journalism Award from SUNY Purchase for her dedication to service and high standards.

Before joining YNN, Elyse interned at The Legislative Gazette, NBC’s Dateline, and YNN Albany, in addition to freelancing for several online publications. Originally from the Albany area, Elyse is now looking forward to exploring the Southern Tier. In her spare time, Elyse enjoys tweeting, playing guitar, running, and visiting drive-in theaters. If you have any suggestions or ideas for stories, please don’t be shy and send them her way!

Videojournalist

Iris St. Meran joined the YNN team in February 2008. Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Iris moved to Central New York after working at New England Cable News as a Digital Media Producer and Desk Assistant. During her time there, Iris had the opportunity to be a field producer at the 2008 Presidential Primary in New Hampshire.

Iris graduated cum laude from Emerson College, majoring in broadcast journalism with a concentration in music. While at Emerson, she spent some time at the Los Angeles campus and interned at CNN. She also interned at WCVB-TV, Boston's ABC affiliate.

When she is not working, Iris enjoys singing, listening to live music and spending time with her friends and family. As a Bostonian, Iris loves to cheer for the Red Sox and the Patriots. She is excited to be in Central New York and hopes to learn to ice skate!

Andrew Sorensen joins YNN’s Mohawk Valley bureau from Colorado, where he studied broadcast news and peace and conflict studies and the University of Colorado, Boulder. He's thrilled to now cover the news in such a beautiful area as Central New York.

Prior to YNN, he interned with KCNC in Denver and CBS News in New York.

Andrew has a passion for politics, economics and world issues. He loves to travel, having visited and photographed Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Romania, Spain, Canada and England.

If you have story ideas, or see an issue in our community you would like to see addressed, feel free to contact him at andrew.sorensen@ynn.com.

Cara Thomas joined YNN as the reporter for our North Country Newsroom in Potsdam and is now based in our Mohawk Valley Newsroom, covering the Utica, Rome and Herkimer County region.

Cara is originally from the Rochester area and began her news career with YNN Rochester as a photographer. Cara graduated from Messiah College with a double major in Broadcast Journalism and Theatre. During Cara's senior year of college, she spent the summer interning at YNN. She learned a lot of great lessons about news and life during her experience. Working alongside such a talented crew encouraged Cara to pursue reporting.

Cara loves to report on positive stories happening in the Valley and strives to look for a positive outlook in any situation. Outside of work, Cara loves to go to the theatre, read a good romance novel, and play board games with friends.

Videojournalist

Chris joined the YNN team in July 2011 as a News/Sports Videojournalist in the Binghamton newsroom but is no stranger to the area. He grew up on Binghamton’s south side and went Binghamton High School before attending Syracuse University, where he graduated from in 2008 with a degree in Broadcast Jounalism and a minor in History.

Before joining YNN, Chris spent two and a half years at WICZ in Binghamton where he served as a reporter and weekend sports anchor. While at WICZ, he won an Associated Press award and was also named a Reader’s Choice winner for favorite television personality two years in a row.

When he’s not working, Chris enjoys spending time with his family, playing with his dog, and golfing. Feel free to send him ideas for news or sports stories by emailing chris.whalen@ynn.com.

Videojournalist

Barry Wygel started in YNN's North Country bureau in September 2012, but he is not new to YNN. Before working as a videojournlalist, Barry worked for the past two summers at YNN's marketing department. You may have seen him driving the YNN StormChaser all over upstate New York.

Originally from the Albany area, Barry attended the State University of New York College at Oswego where he majored in journalism with a concentration in broadcasting and minors in political science and history. While at Oswego, Barry worked at WTOP-10 TV, the campus television station. He served in various capacities and was news director for his final two years of college.

Barry has completed internships at YNN Albany and The Legislative Gazette, and has supplied stories for WAMC Northeast Public Radio and The Palladium Times in Oswego, NY.

In his spare time, Barry volunteers as a firefighter and is a New York State certified EMT. If you have any ideas for stories or have a news tip, please e-mail Barry a barry.wygel@ynn.com.

Videojournalist

Katie joined the YNN team in August 2012 as a reporter in the Corning/ Elmira Newsroom. As a Southern Tier native she’s excited to be located in Corning and a part of the news team that she has watched for years.

Katie began her education at Broome Community College in Binghamton. There, she played for the NJCAA women’s volleyball and lacrosse teams. After she earned her Associate’s Degree in Communications and Media Arts, she transferred to the State University of New York at Oswego where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcasting. While attending Oswego she worked for the campus newspaper, and television station WTOP-10 TV. Katie also interned at WICZ-TV in Binghamton and at Oswego National Public Radio affiliate WRVO-FM.

Katie started her reporting career at WICZ-TV as a multimedia journalist where she covered the flooding from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. She then moved to Ithaca to write and anchor news at WHCU-AM. When not covering the Southern Tier for YNN, Katie enjoys spending time with her family, watching football, and playing sports. If you have a story idea, you can email her at katie.husband@ynn.com.

Videojournalist

Carmella has been a reporter in YNN’s Watertown newsroom since November 2012. She graduated from Penn State University in the spring of 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Broadcast Journalism and minor in English.

Before she joined YNN, Carmella held many internship positions. Her latest was in the summer of 2012 at WNEP, her local news station. During her time there, she covered many different news stories.

The highlight of her summer was spending two months in Bellefonte, PA, helping cover the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse trial. There she assisted reporters in interviews, daily video shooting, and taking notes in the courtroom.

Originally from Dunmore, Pennsylvania, Carmella is happy to be a part of the YNN news team.

Videojournalist

Crystal has always had a passion for storytelling and is happy her path has brought her to the Southern Tier. Crystal joined the YNN team in January 2013 as a Reporter/Videojournalist in our Corning/Elmira newsroom.

Before arriving in New York, Crystal spent two years working at KYW-TV, the CBS station in Philadelphia, as a Digital Media Producer. While in Philadelphia, Crystal was awarded two journalism fellowships - the Knights Digital Media Fellowship at UC Berkeley and the Kiplinger Fellowship for Public Affairs Reporting at Ohio State University.

Raised in New Jersey, Crystal graduated from Howard University with a B.A. in Journalism. While in college, she interned at CBS Interactive and the CBS Evening News. During her sophomore year, Crystal was awarded a White House Correspondents’ Award for her passion for journalism and academics.

When she is not working, Crystal loves spending time with friends and family, cooking, and playing with her cat. Crystal looks forward to meeting people in the community and hopes to learn to ski while she is in the Southern Tier. Don’t be afraid to say hello! If you have a story idea, email her at crystal.cranmore@ynn.com.