Ralph R. Ortega has been a reporter and editor for several major newspapers and magazines for more than 30 years.
Most recently, he was the editor-in-chief of the award-winning City & State NY magazine. At City & State, Ralph managed a team of talented journalists covering the downfall of former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the ascent of current Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ election campaign and later his administration, as well as the election of Mayor Zohran Mamdani. In his role, Ralph became a well-known player in New York’s political world, emceeing, moderating, and conducting interviews at City & State events. He also wrote a weekly column that focused on policy, transportation, and advocated for greater Latino representation at City Hall and in city government.
As a reporter, Ralph worked for the New York Daily News and New Jersey’s Star-Ledger and Asbury Park Press. He also worked in financial journalism, serving as the editor-in-chief of the wealth management magazine OnWallStreet and as a reporter for the newsletter Hedge Fund Alert. He got his start in journalism as a clerk for the New York Times when the newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the first World Trade Center attacks.
Ralph’s breaking news and investigative work has taken him on assignments across the United States, as well as to Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. He witnessed and covered the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks and landed a world exclusive with the father of Elian Gonzalez, the child embroiled in an international custody battle involving the U.S. and Cuban governments. Ralph has interviewed politicians, sports figures, entertainers, and celebrities, including then real estate mogul Donald Trump about his New Jersey golf course.
A graduate of New York University, Ralph is a native New Yorker and the son of immigrant parents from Cuba and Chile, both of whom he’s currently writing about for a memoir. He is the proud father of four adult children and lives with his wife Anna in New York City.
