Janay Reece

Janay Reece is a vibrant and fun-loving reporter at WDBJ7. She works in the New River Valley bureau. She joined WDBJ7 in August 2020 after spending two years anchoring, reporting, and producing at Gray TV’s sister station KYOU in Ottumwa, IA/Kirksville, MO.

While in the Midwest, she covered the 2020 Iowa Caucus. Some of her stories led to the state cracking down on in-home daycares and a local police department releasing body camera footage of a toddler being saved from drowning in a lake.

Janay interned in Washington D.C. learning all about our nation’s capital. She worked as a reporting fellow with the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) where she was tasked to work with a team on a project addressing global social initiatives established by the United Nations.

Her love for serving the community and passion for telling stories started at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC. She studied Mass Communications and minored in Political Science.

She has won awards with the RTDNAC and the South Carolina Press Association for best newscast, photography, and news story in 2016 and 2017 for her work in multimedia reporting and producing.

Janay is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ).

When not at work, Janay loves to laugh, watch a good superhero movie, cook, and spend time with family.

She was born in Baltimore, MD, and raised in Charlotte, NC but is happy to call Southwest Virginia her new home.