About Us
About WLVR
We are WLVR – your full-service NPR news and information station serving the Lehigh Valley! We’ll be featuring national, international and local news coverage from Lehigh Valley Public Media’s Reporter Corps ®.
WLVR is licensed in Bethlehem, PA to the Lehigh Valley Public Telecommunications Corporation in partnership with Lehigh University. Lehigh Valley Public Media is the home of public television station PBS39/WLVT and the television station WPPT, as well as the Lehigh Valley Reads and Battling Opioids initiatives. Lehigh Valley Public Media is the umbrella name for all our brands and initiatives. We are a 50-year-young non-profit located on the historical SteelStacks campus, 90 minutes from Manhattan, and 60 minutes from Philadelphia, in the rapidly-growing Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania.
Vision Statement
A community that is inspired, engaged and vibrant.
Mission Statement
WLVR acts as the catalyst to promote civic engagement, and to fulfill the regional needs of the Greater Lehigh Valley through its dynamic communication platforms and resources.
Meet Our Team
Christine Dempsey- Sr. VP of Radio
Christine Dempsey currently oversees the programming and recent launch of WLVR 91.3, the first full-service, NPR news and information radio station serving the Greater Lehigh Valley. She has more than 30 years of professional radio experience, most recently from WABE-Atlanta. She has worked for WHYY, Philadelphia, WDIY in Bethlehem, WNYC in New York City and a variety of other public radio stations while she was an on-air fundraising consultant. Dempsey has been recognized with industry awards from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the National Academy of Television Arts and Science, as well as the Philadelphia Society of Professional Journalists and the Pennsylvania Associated Press. Most recently, she was awarded the prestigious Peabody and RFK Journalism awards for the podcast, Buried Truths. In addition, the Hip-Hop podcast Bottom of the Map, which she developed, was accepted as part of PRX’s national Project Catapult series. Christine can be contacted at. Christine can be contacted at cdempsey@wlvrnews.org
Jen Rehill- Radio News Director
Jen Rehill brings fifteen years of media experience to WLVR at stations such as WHYY, WITF, WHP, WVIA, WQLN and WDUQ. She has worked as a program producer, reporter, podcast producer, host and Pennsylvania State Capitol Bureau Chief, where she helped craft a new bureau and news service with coverage on state politics and national elections. Rehill ha garnered journalism awards from the Radio and Television News Directors Association, Pennsylvania AP Broadcasters Association, The Society of Professional Journalists and Public Radio News Directors, Inc. She once scored a regional Edward R. Murrow award for a feature report on women’s roller derby. Jen can be contacted at jrehill@wlvrnews.org
Jonas Bowen- Director of Radio Operations
Jonas Bowen currently serves as WLVR’s Operations Director. He began his career in Broadcasting in Shenandoah Valley at WINC FM, a heritage FM signal expanding into the greater Washington DC area. Jonas’ voice has been heard over the last two decades, on a dozen AM and FM stations in Washington DC, Virginia, Maryland and eventually Pennsylvania, where Bowen started working as the Audio Engineer for PBS39-WLVT, assisting with live election coverage, live debates and live community conversations.
Jonas can be contacted at jbowen@wlvrnews.org
Brad Klein- Host/ Reporter
Brad Klein comes to the WLVR News team with more than 25 years of professional experience in radio, podcast and video production. His first job in public radio was on late-night show, Heat with John Hockenberry, which led to production roles in a number of start-ups at NPR, MSNBC and WNYC. Klein also assisted in the creation of NPR’s Talk of the Nation: Science Friday. He played similar start-up roles for NPR’s Weekly Edition, MSNBC’s Edgewise, Public Radio International’s Satellite Sisters and even as a writer on one of the early pilot episodes of the comedic news show, Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me. Klein has also worked as a reporter, producer, and director for National Public Radio News programs including Weekend Edition and All Things Considered. Brad can be contacted at bklein@wlvrnews.org
Tyler Pratt- Host/ Reporter
Tyler Pratt is WLVR News’ reporter and afternoon news host. He hails from West Texas and joined the WLVR News team from the West Coast, having served as a host, reporter and producer at Central California Coast Public Radio, KCBX. Tyler also had stints as producer and host at WNYC in New York, KUT/KUTX in Austin, Texas and worked on the Southern Foodways Alliance podcast, Gravy, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Tyler received his undergraduate degree from Southwestern University and his graduate degree from the Columbia School of Journalism. Tyler’s passions include Saints football, Southern literature, crawfish, barbecue and he loves a dance floor. Tyler can be contacted at tpratt@wlvrnews.org
Genesis Ortega- Community Correspondent
Genesis Ortega has a passion for community outreach, especially as it pertains to the Hispanic community. She serves as Lehigh Valley Public Media’s first Community Correspondent, covering important issues and news for the Latino community, on WLVR-FM. When she is not on the air, she is in front of the camera, serving as a co-host for Spanish talk show Es Tiempo, on PBS39. In 2019 she was named Hispanic Businessperson of the Year during the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce Excellence in Business Awards. She also serves as a Board member of the Fé Foundation program, which brings together students, university faculties, and local businesses and organizations in order to introduce comprehensive life skills and entrepreneurial training to high school students of the Lehigh Valley. Prior to joining the team at Lehigh Valley Public Media, she worked in Congressman Charlie Dent’s office. There, she had the opportunity to interact with constituents and community leaders from across the 15th Congressional District in Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Lebanon, and Dauphin counties. Genesis can be contacted at genesiso@wlvt.org.
Juliana Wall- Digital Content Producer
Juliana Wall is WLVR’s Digital Content Producer. She is an alumna of Cedar Crest College, with a BA in Communication New Media and Writing and a minor in English. She served on Cedar Crest’s student-run newspaper and eventually earned a position as Editor-in-Chief and Photo Editor. Wall runs her own photography business, specializing in elopements and adventure weddings along with portrait photography. Most recently, Wall worked with the marketing team at the Community Action Development Corporation in Bethlehem to further public awareness of the #SouthsideProud social media campaign. Juliana can be contacted at jwall@wlvrnews.org.
Meet Your Reporters
Click HERE to learn more about your reporters.
How to Pitch a Program
Lehigh Valley Public Media’s mission states that the organization “acts as the catalyst to promote civic engagement, and to fulfill the regional needs of the Greater Lehigh Valley through its dynamic communication platforms and resources.”
Our newest service, WLVR-FM, will offer the area local, national and international news coverage. We also plan to create original content for the community.
If you have a program idea you’d like to pitch, please follow this procedure:
Submit a written proposal by filling out the form below. (Think of this as your elevator pitch.)
Keep in mind the mission of Lehigh Valley Public Media and how your program fits into the mission.
- What is the focus or point of the program?
- What are the core values of the program?
- Who is the program intended for?
- Who are the people on the program? Possible Host? Possible Guests?
- What are some sample topics to be included in the program?
Proposal Form:
Music