Early life

Rea was born in Clarkesville, Georgia

Clarkesville, Georgia

Clarkesville is a city located in the center of Habersham County, Georgia. It is also the county seat.-Geography:Clarkesville is located at ....

 to Judy, a florist, and James M. Rea, an attorney

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

. According to his mother,he knew he wanted to be a DJ at an early age. When he was 6, Rea called a radio classifieds show, Dial and Deal on WIAF-AM

WCHM

WCHM and 96.7 FM is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Clarkesville, Georgia, USA. The station is currently owned by WCHM Radio, LLC, an affiliated company of Batten Communications, inc. and features programming from Premiere Radio Networks and FOX News Radio...

, offering to sell his older sister. There were no takers. He also hosted the morning announcements at Habersham

Habersham County, Georgia

Habersham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on December 15, 1818, and named for Colonel Joseph Habersham. As of 2000, the population was 35,902. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 42,272. Clarkesville is the county seat.Chartered in 1823, the...

 Central High School.

1980s

Rea began his career in 1983 at age 14 as an afternoon and weekend radio host and News Anchor for Clarkesville

Clarkesville, Georgia

Clarkesville is a city located in the center of Habersham County, Georgia. It is also the county seat.-Geography:Clarkesville is located at ....

’s WIAF

WCHM

WCHM and 96.7 FM is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Clarkesville, Georgia, USA. The station is currently owned by WCHM Radio, LLC, an affiliated company of Batten Communications, inc. and features programming from Premiere Radio Networks and FOX News Radio...

. He was one of the station's youngest DJs.

After completing high school, Rea went on to attend the University of Georgia

University of Georgia

The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

 where he majored in Journalism. During his freshman year of college, Rea worked for both WGAU

WGAU

WGAU is a radio station licensed to serve Athens, Georgia, United States, that broadcasts a News/Talk format. The transmitter is located at the studios in the Five Points area of Downtown Athens....

 and WNGC as a DJ. Rea left the stations in 1988 to work for cross-town rival WBKZ where he held the largely ceremonial title of Afternoon News Director.

Writing and reporting news was only a fraction of Rea’s job, he was in reality a Disc Jockey

Disc jockey

A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...

 playing oldies records from the 1950s and 1960s. However, he did manage to score one significant story in the few months he worked for the station. During the 1988 Democratic National Convention

1988 Democratic National Convention

The 1988 National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at The Omni in Atlanta, Georgia from July 18–July 21, 1988 to select a candidate for the 1988 United States presidential election. At the convention Gov. Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts was nominated for President and...

 in Atlanta, actor Rob Lowe

Rob Lowe

Robert Hepler "Rob" Lowe is an American actor. Lowe came to prominence after appearing in films such as The Outsiders, Oxford Blues, About Last Night..., St. Elmo's Fire, and Wayne's World. On television, Lowe is known for his role as Sam Seaborn on The West Wing and his role as Senator Robert...

 became involved in a sex scandal with a 16 year old girl. Rea managed to get one of the only interviews with Hue Henry, the attorney who sued over the matter on behalf of the girl's mother.

Rea returned to WNGC as the host of their "All Night Request Show" in 1989.

1990s

Rea was promoted to Music Director and Midday Host at WNGC in 1991.
His work on the popular Paul Rea Midday led to an offer to host an afternoon video music show on Athens TV station WNGM-TV.

In 1992 he joined actress/model Eaddy Thomas (Eaddy Mays) to co-host a morning news show on WNGM.
When the show was canceled in 1994, Rea went back to radio at Magic 102.1 FM

WMGM (FM)

WMGM is a radio station based in Atlantic City, New Jersey playing mainstream rock. WMGM serves most of southern New Jersey from Toms River to Cape May.-History:103.7 first signed on June 14, 1961 as WOSJ, later as WMGM...

 in Athens. There he was reunited with Thomas and hosted a successful morning show for the station until leaving again for television news.

In 1997 he joined WNEG-TV the CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

 affiliate in Toccoa, Georgia

Toccoa, Georgia

Toccoa is a city in Stephens County, Georgia, United States located approximately from Athens and approximately northeast of Atlanta. The population was 9,323 at the 2000 census...

 as a reporter and then as anchor of the Daybreak morning news show.

2000-Present

He joined WSAV-TV

WSAV-TV

WSAV-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Coastal Empire of Southeastern Georgia and the Lowcountry of Southern South Carolina. Licensed to Savannah, it broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter in Pooler, Georgia...

 in Savannah in 2000 as a photojournalist. During his year at the station, he began his investigation of the Tybee Bomb

Tybee Bomb

The Tybee Island B-47 crash was an incident on February 5, 1958, in which the United States Air Force lost a Mark 15 hydrogen bomb in the waters off Tybee Island near Savannah, Georgia, USA. During a practice exercise the B-47 bomber carrying it collided in midair with an F-86 fighter plane. To...

.

The nuclear weapon

Nuclear weapon

A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...

 was lost near Tybee Island, Georgia

Tybee Island, Georgia

Tybee Island is an island and city in Chatham County, Georgia near the city of Savannah in the southeastern United States. It is the easternmost point in the state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,990. Tybee Island is an island and city in Chatham County, Georgia near...

 in the 1950s. With the help of amateur bomb hunters Rea brought to light documents that showed the weapon might still be dangerous due to a small quantity of plutonium

Plutonium

Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...

 believed to be inside. These reports were rejected by the United States Department of Defense

United States Department of Defense

The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...

 but the United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

 did reopen the investigation first in 2001 and again in 2005.

Both recent investigations maintain the weapon is lost and no danger to the public.

In the summer of 2000, Rea was attacked while covering a story in Coffee County, Georgia

Coffee County, Georgia

Coffee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 37,413. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 40,085. The county seat is Douglas.-History:...

.

The incident came to light in a November 2005 article in Georgia Trend magazine. The article, "Who’s Who in TV News" by Jerry Grillo, also ranked Rea as one of the top reporters in the state.

Grillo wrote:

Though Rea almost certainly is the only person on Georgia Trend’s Who’s Who list of TV news people to have taped his own beating, his experience defines the pluck and tenacity of the TV journalist.

While the magazine claims Rea’s camera was rolling during the attack; the footage never appeared on television.

Rea returned to anchor, write and produce the morning show at WNEG-TV in 2001. He also produced the station's popular Georgia Journey segments showcasing unique people and places in Northeast Georgia.

Rea returned to WSAV-TV in 2003 to oversee the station’s Community Report covering neighborhood issues such as blight, crime

Crime

Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...

, policing issues, and poverty

Poverty

Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...

 in Savannah.

Special reports include Counting Cops in which he showed the Savannah Metropolitan Police Department was seriously understaffed and Houses From Hell which drew attention to some of the city’s worst dilapidated houses.

Rea was fired from his position at WSAV-TV in 2008.

In 2009 Rea began working as a Media and Messaging Consultant for government and corporate clients including the City of Savannah.

He is also a news reader on Fox News Radio 810 WXFO-AM in Royston, Georgia

Royston, Georgia

Royston is a city in Franklin, Hart, and Madison counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 2,493 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Royston is located at ....

.

On September 24th 2010, Rea debuted as the anchor of "Newsnight on the Patriot" on WRWR-LD

WRWR-LD

WRWR-LD is a low-power Digital television station based in Warner Robins, Georgia and an affiliate of America One and Universal Sports on DT2. The transmitter is located along with other major broadcasters along the GA 87/U.S. 23/Alt U.S. 129 along the Bibb and Twiggs County line...

channel 38.1 in Warner Robins Georgia. but this position was temporary as behind the scenes Rea was tasked with developing all programming for the fledgling station. During the six months of the stations launch, Rea oversaw the development of four original local programs, including a two hour nightly local newscast, and helped transition two existing shows from radio to television. Rea has since returned to Savannah to provide media and messaging support to political clients in advance of the 2011 municipal elections.