#MediaMonday – Eva Bowen
Most of us know (and love) Eva Bowen from her many years at the helm of ABC 15’s Sonoran Living Live. Today, she has taken on a new role away from the cameras but still within the media as producer of Outreach Today, an internet-based radio talk show on VoiceAmerica.
We welcome Eva here to #MediaMonday and ask…
So, Eva, what do you want to tell the blogosphere today?
Well hello there folks. My name is Eva – and no I’m not a Diva, and you don’t have to be delivered from me (a nod to Deliver Us From Eva starring Gabrielle Union) J I am a real outgoing person and most people who know me know that I have a big heart, and I’m a very transparent about my life. I have lived in the Valley since I was 10-years=old. Which means 36 years because I am now 46 and happy to see each and every day on this Earth. I am originally from Michigan. My parents left the snow and came to heat! Go figure the freezer into the frying pan.
I graduated from Arizona State University with both my Master’s and Bachelor’s Degrees in Broadcast Journalism. I am also looking into attending ASU to complete my Doctorate. I went to ASU on a full-ride basketball scholarship. I was also involved in my sorority and several honorary organizations such as Leadership Scholarship, Devils Advocates and Student Foundation. While at ASU, I was selected as the first runner-up to Homecoming Queen and named the First Miss Black ASU.
I have always been a fan of beauty pageants on TV. I would watch them, pick my favorites, pick my top 10 and then sit there nervous as heck waiting to see who would win and if the judges picks would line up with my own. This is probably why I was involved in pageants while in high school and college. Funny, huh? This has also led me to a professional modeling career. I am signed with Ford Robert Black. I haven’t done a show in a while, mainly because I’m so busy. But I love fashion shows and walking the runway.
I am a huge basketball fan. I have a cousin who plays for the Orlando Magic, and my brother used to play overseas. I loved it when I was able to attend most of the home games when Jason played with the Phoenix Suns. I’m also a basketball mom. My son is currently on the best AAU 11U team on the West Coast. So most weekends you can usually find me in the gym. We are a traveling team so usually two times a month we are out-of-town at tournaments.
For the past four months I have also been mothering a little girl I met. She’s six and a handful! Her mother is not in her life and hasn’t been for four years. I enjoy picking her up on weekends and doing girl stuff. I don’t enjoy maneuvering through the rivalry that has developed between she and my son. They have a love-dislike relationship. I guess both were only children, now forced into having a part-time sibling. Such is life; you have to take the good with the challenging wouldn’t you agree?
In my spare time I volunteer with the Fiesta Bowl Ambassadors, formerly the Women’s Committee. We volunteer at many events throughout the bowl season. I am enjoying this experience working with the leadership of the Fiesta Bowl and truly have loved the organization since my experience on the Court in college.
Spring 2012, I fulfilled a dream of teaching. I am an adjunct professor at ASU teaching sophomore journalism students how to write in the broadcast style. These students are extremely fortunate. The Walter Cronkite School in downtown Phoenix is so beautiful. A far cry from Stauffer Hall 20 years ago when I attended ASU (Alison agrees!). It has been an amazing experience and I am looking forward to my classes in the fall. I love being able to help shape the minds of future journalists. I believe that I can teach so much more than what’s in the books. I love instilling life skills with my J Tips (journalism tips) to help them become better human beings.
Work wise I have been a journalist for more than 20 years. First starting out at KPNX-TV 12, then moving to an ABC affiliate in Texas, then back to Phoenix at KNXV-TV 15 for 11 years. All those jobs as a news producer. For the first three or four years at ABC 15 I was a news producer. Then I moved into a position at Sonoran Living Live, first as senior producer then as the executive producer from 2005-2010. I love producing. It fits so well with my creative side. Not to brag, but I am naturally very good at it. I love the entire creation process of producing a show.
That brings me to my current job. I am working for Outreach Today, an internet-based radio talk show on the VoiceAmerica Variety Channel. I love it! I enjoy not having to worry about cameras and props and teleprompters! I am a true one-man band at Outreach Today. I book all the guests, produce all the elements for the show, marketing, social media, public relations, graphic artist, picture taker, host, development consultant, fill-in on-air contributor, event planner, blogger…I do it all. It keeps me very very busy.
When we are not taping the live shows in the studio, I am working from home. THIS has been a challenge! If you work from home, I am sure you aware it can get lonely at times and I have to force myself to get out of the house and be around people. When I pick my son up from school, I ask him 20 questions. He’s like “Momma can you quit it with all the questions.” Ha! I haven’t talked to a human being face-to-face all day…talk to me son! Lol. I’m sure there are some books I can pick up to give me some tips on maximizing my work-from-home experience. Luckily my position at ASU has allowed me the outlet to get out and about and talk to people. I enjoy being around people, communicating and interacting with them. If any of you have any ideas feel free to send them my way about working from home.
Minus the isolation it’s great. One other challenge I have is while at ABC 15, all the people who wanted to be on SL or the news came to us. Now I have to start from scratch, building up my contacts to look for local/national guests to come on our show. Ideas wanted in this area as well. I have joined a couple of PR groups on Facebook and LinkedIn.
I guess it would help learning about the show. Outreach Today is a one-hour program that airs live on Wednesdays at 10am Pacific. We usually have one main topic withthree guests on to talk about it..Local guests are asked to come down to our studios if they can and national guests either call in from a land line or use Skype. Topics on the show range from Sex & Relationships, Elder Abuse, Homelessness, Health & Fitness, Teens & Prescription Drug Abuse, Early Intervention of Delinquent Behavior, Veterans on the Road Home, Caring Citizens and Real World Experience. Typically a guest will be on the show for 15-20 minutes. We have all the guests talk individually to our hosts. So if you have a media-savvy client send a pitch my way. I am always looking for great guests! Here is a link to our show page.
Other than that I love to read! James Patterson and self-help books are my favorite. I tore through the “Hunger Games” trilogy and I’m kind of looking forward to seeing what all the hoopla is about with the “Fifty Shades of Grey” trilogy. I’m hearing some very interesting things. So there you have it – have a good one folks! EvaBowen29@yahoo.com.
