About Us
AM 920 & 1240 WNBZ

On September 11, 2007 WNBZ marked its 80th anniversary of broadcasting to residents of Saranac Lake, the Tri-Lakes and beyond.  The station first went on the air on September 11, 1927 through the efforts of Earl J. Smith and William Mace.  Located at 107 Broadway, WNBZ went live with a power of just ten watts.  A lot has changed since then, but the mission remains the same - WNBZ is here to serve the community. 
 

 
Chris Morris - News Director

Chris Morris is News Director at Mountain Communications. He's responsible for the reporting, editing and broadcast of Tri-Lakes region news and also hosts "The Morning News," which is simulcast on ROCK105 and WNBZ (1240 and 920 AM) weekday mornings from 6 to 9 a.m.

Chris was born and raised in Saranac Lake. His parents, Karen and Don Morris, had him cross-country skiing as soon as his legs were strong enough to stand -- and a life-long love of all things outdoors blossomed. In his teenage years, Chris excelled in cross-country ski racing, ranking among the best skiers in New York State and the northeast. He also played lacrosse at the high school level and enjoyed years of kayaking with his father -- who co-authored the paddling guidebook "Adirondack Canoe Waters, North Flow" with Paul Jamieson.

After graduating from Saranac Lake High School, Chris studied at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degrees in English Writing and Religious Studies. At St. Lawrence, he served as editor of the campus newspaper The Hill News for several years and was a longstanding member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, as well as the Irving Bachelor Society – an English honorary group.

Chris's background in journalism is somewhat diverse. At the Malone Telegram, he covered the village and town beat in Malone. In Vermont, he was the editor of the Vermont Times-Sentinel, a 32-page weekly paper that served the communities of Burlington, Shelburne, Hinesburg and Charlotte. He also worked as as assistant to the editor-in-chief of Conde Nast Traveler Magazine in London, England and as news editor for Denton Publications in Elizabethtown.

When he's not manning the WNBZ studio and hosting "Talk of the Town," Chris enjoys fishing on the Adirondacks expansive network of lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. An avid golfer, Chris will find just about any excuse to sneak away and play a quick nine at one of the area courses. And, perhaps most importantly, Chris is a self-admitted, full-time sports junkie -- his first loves being the National Basketball Association and the National Football League. He lives with his cat, Wu-Tang, at an undisclosed location in Saranac Lake.
 

 
Jon Alexander - Assistant News Director
 

Jon Alexander is Assistant News Director at Mountain Communications. His responsibilities include beat reporting and hosting the WNBZ (920 and 1240 AM) public affairs show North Country Today, which is simulcast live Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:05 a.m.

His beats include the Adirondack Park Agency, the Olympic Regional Development Authority, the Town and Village of Tupper Lake and the Essex County Board of Supervisors.

Jon was raised in the southern Adirondack Town of Warrensburg where he was involved in the family funeral business throughout his youth. He graduated from Warrensburg Central School in 2000.

He graduated from SUNY Oneonta in 2004 with Bachelor's Degrees in Anthropology and Philosophy. He then attended New Mexico Highlands University, where he served as a graduate TA and was a primary and guest lecturer in numerous class across several departments. Jon successfully defended his MA Thesis in May of 2007.

Jon worked as a beat reporter for the Denton Publication, the Adirondack Journal throughout 2008. In March of 2009, he was promoted to Editor of the North Creek News Enterprise, where he worked until joining the WNBZ news team in July of 2009.

Jon is the consummate outdoorsman, fishing, hiking and hunting as often as possible. He is also a self described public policy and classical and post-modern philosophy wonk.

Like Chris, Jon is a sports junkie, living and dying with the Mets -- more dying than living these days.

He lives in a "standard" bachelor pad in Saranac Lake where he reads too many books by dead thinkers and listens to way too much Bad Religion.
 

 
  Nicole Lewis - News Announcer
Nicole Lewis is a news announcer on WNBZ.  She hosts the 12:00p.m. and 5:00p.m news hours.  In addition to Swap Shop, a local favorite. 

Nicole can also be heard on WNBZ's sister station Y106.3 from 7:00pm-12:00pm weekdays.