Chris Bolt
Senior Reporter/Professional in ResidenceChris Bolt, Ed.D. has proudly been covering the Central New York community and mentoring students for more than 30 years. His career in public media started as a student volunteer, then as a reporter/producer. Dedicated to keeping local news coverage alive, Chris also has a passion for education, having trained, mentored and provided a platform for growth to more than a thousand students. Career highlights include having work appear on NPR, CBS, ABC and other news networks, winning numerous local and state journalism awards. Recent reporting has focused on health and medicine, environment, elderly, substance abuse and culture reporting.
Chris has a doctor of education in executive leadership from St. John Fisher College and a master’s in broadcast journalism from the Newhouse School.
In addition to coverage of our community, equally satisfying has been the success of so many WAER alumni, students who have won and succeeded in jobs in news, sports and elsewhere in media, many of whom won awards at local, state and national levels as students. He has also taught classes at Newhouse and at OCC. Chris also enjoys connecting WAER with the community through moderating debates, facilitating and hosting public meetings, giving media training workshops and other events.
Chris and his wife Anne live in downtown Syracuse. They have two grown sons, Carter and Donovan, who both remain in the area. Their family enjoys all things Upstate New York, including myriad outdoor activities in the Adirondacks, Finger Lakes, music and other cultural events, and just about anything on a trail or on the water.
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Democrat Toby Shelley is trying to keep his post versus republican challenger RJ Lenhart. Both tout their experience, but which will convince voters? Central Current Laura Robertson describes the race. -
NY State Attorney General Letitia James has an updated guide to help voters spot fraudulent info about voting. She warns messages can be enhanced by AI to look, sound like official people or sources. -
The University at Albany hosted the Clean Energy Pathways workshop to identify barriers and opportunities for renewable energy growth. UAlbany's Bruce Bailey comments on challenges and his optimism. -
The 129th NYS Assembly race between Shawn Fiato & Maurice 'Mo' Brown will mean a new representative replacing long-time incumbent Bill Magnarelli. Key issues are affordability, housing, neighborhoods.
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The Brennan Center for Justice & Common Cause New York explain to public that elections are locally run, with no role for the federal government. The say candidates can also ease fears, promote trust. -
Newhouse Impact was created as an outlet for research & creative activities by faculty and students. It's covered AI, data privacy, journalism issues, media literacy and trends, etc. in 50 episodes. -
Local residents tell candidates for local, state and federal offices that datacenters are a concern due to noise, power use & the environment. But a rising need for them adds jobs, economic growth.
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NY Attorney General Letitia James urges prescription drug users to seek compensation from multi-million-dollar settlement with numerous pharmaceutical companies over inflating generic drug prices. -
Syracuse gas prices have surged between 13 and 18 cents within the last week and are more than $1.20 higher than they were last year. -
A report from NYS Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's office found revenue from sports betting apps has skyrocketed in recent years. But it could mask the true value of the revenue and expose gambling problems.
