With nearly 15 years in broadcasting, Bonnie Bernstein is one of the most recognizable and highly respected journalists in her field. In July, 2006, she signed on with ABC/ESPN to cover ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball with Hall of Famers Jon Miller and Joe Morgan and college football on ABC with Brad Nessler, Bob Griese and Paul McGuire. She is also a rotating host and feature reporter for several ESPN programs, giving her a broad range of responsibilities at "The Worldwide Leader in Sports." 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 2005, Bernstein was honored as one of Jewish Women International’s "Ten Women to Watch," an exclusive group selected from the United States, Canada and Israel for their professional achievements. In 2006, Bernstein launched Velvet Hammer Media, a consulting firm providing coaching for aspiring and working journalists and media training for corporate executives.
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 was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., and grew up in Howell, N.J. She presently resides in New York City.
