Reporter since 2010, MMJ/Anchor since 2012, Mobile Journalist, Storyteller Always – A “Jill” of all trades.
Named One of “Texas Top 50 Women to Watch” – The Society Diaries & Eleanora Magazine
Award-winning journalist Alese Underwood is an On-air reporter/MMJ/Anchor/Mobile Journalist.
She is currently making a new home with her family in Tampa, FL and is a reporter/video journalist for Spectrum Bay News 9 and specializes in military/veterans affairs.
From 2014 to 2020, Alese reported for Spectrum News San Antonio. During her years in the Alamo City, she’s covered many memorable stories including hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and the tragic mass church shooting in Sutherland Springs.
Every day she reports on stories that impact her local community. She’s quick to get out the door and can set up her own live shot within minutes. In recent years she’s embraced the craft of mobile journalism and helped spearhead new technology, apps, and methods at her station. Shooting and editing full stories on her iPhone is “her thing”.
In June 2019, she was given the opportunity to attend the world’s largest mobile journalism conference in Galway, Ireland called “MojoFest”. She learned about the latest technology for mobile reporting, how to help incorporate it into the newsroom, and studied how 360 cameras can be mixed into packages creatively. The Insta360 One X quickly became one of her favorite cameras because of the “invisible selfie stick” feature. Due to her insight and training, the camera quickly became a new addition to the newsroom.
Solo live shots, shooting/editing packages, and creating unique content for the digital team’s social media platforms have become second nature.
Before coming to San Antonio, Alese spent time in Austin, Texas, with Spectrum News. She first got her start in TV as a reporter with WJET-TV/FOX 66 in Erie, Pennsylvania, covering courts and local politics.
Her next career jump brought her to KTAL-TV in Shreveport, Louisiana, covering city and state politics.
Alese holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Chatham University in her hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While at Chatham, she majored in broadcasting and public relations, and double minored in political science and Middle Eastern studies/Arabic.
Alese has a passion for giving a voice to people in her community and helping them tell their stories on multiple platforms.
Don’t hesitate to say hello! She can’t wait to help share your story!