Alexandra "Alex" Cohen (born July 8, 1972) is an American radio and Emmy Award winning television journalist,

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played on an oval track by two teams of five skaters. It is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leaguesA Roller Derby league is synonymous with an individual club or team in other team sports, as ...

skater, and author.

Early life

Cohen was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and moved to California at the age of two. She studied at

Interlochen Arts Academy Interlochen Center for the Arts ( '; also known as I.C.A. or Inty) is a Nonprofit organization, non-profit corporation which operates Visual arts education, arts education institutions and Music venue, performance venues. Established in 1928 b ...

in Michigan,

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

(

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

in Eastern Religions, 1993), and the

University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism The UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism is a graduate professional school on the campus of University of California, Berkeley. It is designed to produce journalists with a two-year Master of Journalism (MJ) degree. It also offers a minor i ...

(Master of Journalism). Cohen is the daughter of

Kip Cohen Kip Cohen is an American entertainment and record company executive who once held positions at the Fillmore East, Columbia Records and the Herb Alpert Foundation. Career In 1964 Cohen was the theater production manager for ''The Committee'' and '' ...

, a former American arts and entertainment executive, concert presenter, record company executive and goddaughter of American rock concert promoter Bill Graham. Her brother is musician Chris Cohen.

Career

Cohen began her radio career at

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

in Washington, D.C. as producer and director for ''Weekly Edition'' and ''Weekend All Things Considered''. From 2000 to 2003, Cohen worked for San Francisco's KQED first as a producer for the statewide radio program ''California Report'' and later as the Los Angeles bureau chief for the same program. Cohen has also reported for

American Public Media American Public Media (APM) is an American company that produces and distributes public radio programs in the United States, the second largest company of its type after NPR. Its non-profit parent, American Public Media Group, also owns and o ...

's financial news program ''

Marketplace A marketplace, market place, or just market, is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a ''souk'' (from ...

'' and served as host of the weekly APM program ''

Weekend America ''Weekend America'' was a weekly public radio program dealing with news, popular culture, the arts and more. The program was produced for American Public Media and hosted by John Moe in Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated S ...

''. She was a host and reporter for NPR's daily news program, '' Day to Day'' and moved to KPCC radio in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

. Cohen was the afternoon host and reporter for "All Things Considered" from 2009-2012 before being named co-host of the 9-11 am morning program, "Take Two." In September 2018, Cohen was named morning news anchor and host for Spectrum Cable's all-news channel for Southern California. Cohen will also host a one-hour political program, "Inside the Issues." In July 2020, Cohen was part of the Spectrum News team recognized with an Emmy Award for the program “Under the Gun.”

Roller derby

From 2003-2010, Cohen was a member of the

Los Angeles Derby Dolls The L. A. Derby Dolls (LADD) is Los Angeles' original women's quad-skate banked track roller derby league. It was founded in October 2003 by Rebecca Ninburg (a.k.a. Demolicious) and Wendy Templeton (a.k.a. Thora Zeen). The league is composed of ...

, using the

derby name A derby name, roller derby name or skater name is a nickname used by a skater while playing or officiating roller derby. Derby names can be seen as an opportunity to adopt an alternative on-track persona. Many derby names are puns, and in some ...

"Axles of Evil", and TXRD Lonestar Rollergirls, skating as "Smother Theresa". In 2009, Cohen was hired to work on the

Drew Barrymore Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, talk show host, and businesswoman. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she has received multiple List of awards and nominations received by Drew Barrymore, awards a ...

-directed roller derby film, '' Whip It''. Cohen co-wrote an insider's guide to roller derby called ''Down and Derby'', published in 2010.

Personal life

In August 2007, Cohen, at age 35, married Richard Dean, then 41 and the technology director of a public radio station in Austin, Texas.

Filmography

*'' Whip It'' (2009, Fox Searchlight) as skate trainer, derby consultant, and herself.

Books

*''Down and Derby'' (2010, New York,

Soft Skull Press Counterpoint LLC was a publishing company that Perseus Books Group launched in 2007. It was formed from the consolidation of three presses: Perseus' Counterpoint Press, Shoemaker & Hoard, and Soft Skull Press. The company published books under b ...

) is her insider's account of the history and culture of the roller derby.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cohen, Alex American radio journalists Roller derby skaters American roller skaters Brown University alumni Interlochen Center for the Arts alumni UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism alumni Living people 1972 births Sportspeople from New York City