Becoming a Media Savvy Professional: Best Practices for Effective and Ethical Communication with Reporters

Dr. Rego is Chief of Psychology and Director of Psychology Training at Montefiore Medical Center and Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York. He is Board Certified in Cognitive Behavioral Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology, Certified in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy by the Canadian Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies, and Certified as a Cognitive Therapy Trainer/Consultant by the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies. He is also a Fellow of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies and the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies and a Founding Clinical Fellow of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.  

Dr. Rego has more than 50 publications (including a book for professionals on the treatment of OCD and a forthcoming book for professionals on the treatment of Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia) and nearly 200 professional presentations. He also co-authored 2 self-help books (The 10-Step Depression Relief Workbook: A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Approach and The CBT Workbook for Mental Health) which have now been translated into German, Polish, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Dutch. Dr. Rego has been working with media since 2004 and has specialized interests in the use of social media to educate the public about mental health and the identification, implementation, and evaluation of emerging technologies to improve treatment outcomes. 

Dr. Rego is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) and the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA). He was the recipient of the 2008 Award for Distinguished Early Career Psychologists by the New York State Psychological Association, the 2015 Peterson Prize from the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology at Rutgers University, and the 2018 Jerilyn Ross Clinician Advocate Award from the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. In 2021, he was selected to join the Montefiore Physician Leadership Academy's Physician Leadership Program and in 2023 was selected to join the Montefiore Einstein Innovation Biodesign Training Program.

Dr. Chapman is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, founder and director of the Kentucky Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders (KYCARDS) where he specializes in the assessment and treatment of anxiety and related disorders. Dr. Chapman is a Diplomate and Certified by the Academy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapies (A-CBT), and is a nationally recognized expert in the implementation of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety and related disorders. Additionally, Dr. Chapman serves as a consultant for the creation of evidenced-based, anxiety treatment protocols due to his additional expertise related to the intersection of multiculturalism and mental health. Similarly, Dr. Chapman has published numerous papers in scientific journals and has written several book chapters. Dr. Chapman is on the Clinical and Scientific Advisory Board for the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) and is a Mental Health Expert for TrueSport, a subsidiary for the United States Antidoping Agency (USADA). Dr. Chapman serves on several Editorial Boards including the Journal of Anxiety Disorders and Clinical Child and Family Psychologist Review. Additionally, Dr. Chapman is a Media Psychologist and regularly contributes to and serves as a consultant for multiple media outlets including A&E and other production companies. Along these lines, Dr. Chapman is also on the Psychology Expert Media Panel for the Coalition for the Application and Advancement of Psychological Science (CAAPS). Most recently, Dr. Chapman was the Program Psychologist for Seasons 1 and 2 on A&E’s hit documentary 60 Days In. Dr. Chapman has been featured in US News and World Report, USA Today, NBC Health, Bloomberg Business Week, Men’s Health, and numerous other outlets including the Nick News documentary Worried Sick: Living with Anxiety, a feature on adolescent anxiety. Dr. Chapman also serves as the Team Psychologist for the Louisville City Football Club. Dr. Chapman previously served as an Associate Professor in Clinical Psychology. Dr. Chapman completed a BS in Psychology from Centre College, a MS in Clinical Psychology from Eastern Kentucky University, and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Louisville.

Dr. Anne-Marie Albano, PhD, ABBP, is a professor of medical psychology, a clinical psychologist and board certified in clinical child and adolescent psychology. In addition to serving as Director of the Columbia University Clinic for Anxiety and Related Disorders at 3 Columbus Circle, she also conducts research and train residents, fellows and psychology postdoctoral.

Melissa G. Hunt is a licensed clinical psychologist and serves as the Associate Director of Clinical Training in the Department of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Fellow and Diplomate of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy and a member of the Rome Foundation Psychogastroenterology working group.

Dr. Hunt conducts research on the best approaches for stress management, and into the causes and treatment of depression, anxiety disorders and chronic GI disorders. As a clinical scientist, her emphasis is on translating basic psychological science into treatments that are effective, acceptable, and accessible to patient populations. In particular, Dr. Hunt focuses on identifying and correcting the underlying patient factors (e.g. unhelpful beliefs and maladaptive avoidance) that lead to reduced quality of life, impairment and distress, particularly factors that exacerbate chronic health problems and make them harder to cope with.  In addition to her research, she maintains an active private practice in clinical psychology in which she specializes in cognitive-behavioral treatment of mood, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, and trauma disorders and on working with patients with chronic GI disorders and other health problems. Dr. Hunt is the author of the highly-regarded self-help book “Reclaim Your Life from IBS: A Scientifically Proven Plan for Relief without Restrictive Diets”