Reed Cowan

Darrin Reed Cowan (also known as Reed Abplanalp-Cowan) (born July 24, 1972) is an American journalist. He currently serves as an anchor for CBS News 24/7 as well as the co-anchor of the CBS News Bay Area Morning Edition.

Cowan co-directed the GLAAD Media Award winning 2010 documentary 8: The Mormon Proposition with Steven Greenstreet.

Career Cowan started his journalism career working as a radio disc-jockey for KNEU Radio in Roosevelt, Utah. In 1995, Cowan worked as a part-time on-air reporter for Fox's KSTU in Salt Lake City, Utah while a student at Utah State University. From there he assumed full-time positions as an anchor for KBAK-TV in Bakersfield, California, and as an anchor for WWTV in Cadillac, Michigan. Cowan next worked as a reporter and weekend morning anchor for KSL-TV in Salt Lake City.

After KSL-TV, Cowan moved to KTVX, also in Salt Lake City. While there, he anchored Good Morning Utah and covered the terrorist attacks of 9-11, the kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart, the murder of Lori Hacking, the death of former President Ronald Reagan and the fugitive stories of polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs.

Along with Jordan Whitney, Cowan won a local Rocky Mountain Emmy Award in 2008 for editing a piece called Emo Culture. The couple sustained dozens of Utah’s gay couples receiving marriage licenses at the Washington County Clerk’s office on December 23, 2013.

Wesley's death prompted Cowan to found the Wesley Smiles Coalition, which works with Free the Children to raise funds to build schools in Africa. Cowan also made the 2007 documentary The Other Side of the Lens, which covers his emotions over his son's death and his experiences with the media attention Wesley's death attracted.

Cowan is also on the advisory board for Free The Children, a child advocacy organization, and serves as a producer for the youth organization Power In You.

Film reviews

Cowan has produced and directed two self-made films, The Other Side of the Lens and 8. The Mormon Proposition. These were met with mixed reviews from film critics, with some praising his highly personal choices of subject matter while others criticized what they viewed as self-absorption, disjointed storytelling and substandard production as well as the overuse of stock footage.

The Other Side of the Lens (2009)

Cowan's first film, The Other Side of the Lens, explored Cowan's feelings as he mourned the death of his 4 year-old son Wesley in a playground accident. The film follows Cowan to an impoverished rural region of Kenya, where he sought to expiate his grief by raising money to build a schoolhouse. While much of the film was devoted to criticizing sensationalism in the news media, Propes writes, ""The Other Side of the Lens" reinforces the sensationalism by showing examples of said sensationalism," using as an example footage of a driver intentionally crashing into a crowd with children, at one point in slow-motion. which is repeated throughout the film. The film was co-produced with Steven Greenstreet and WordPerfect co-founder and gay rights activist Bruce Bastian. Cowan blamed Mormons for spreading what he called "misinformation" about the California ballot measure and drew an analogy to the predicament of homeless gay Mormon teenagers. Asked at Sundance why he created the film, Cowan answered, "Really, my personal reason…is the fact that I was a kid in Roosevelt, Utah, who knew what it was like to be called a ‘faggot’ every day." A writer for the Salt Lake City Tribune, on the other hand, called it "a vital, important cry for an open dialogue." The dispute arose from the placement of a plaque honoring Cowan's deceased son Wesley at a school in Kenya built by WE Charity, about which Cowan had testified before the Canadian Parliament several weeks prior. WE Charity's attorneys responded by accusing Cowan of attempted extortion.

Awards and nominations 2007, nominated Rocky Mountain Regional Emmy Award for KTVX 2008, won Rocky Mountain Regional Emmy Award for KTVX 2008, nominated Suncoast Regional Emmy Award for WSVN 2009, nominated Suncoast Regional Emmy Award for WSVN 2011, won GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Documentary for 8: The Mormon Proposition 2013, won 5 Pacific Southwest Regional Emmy Awards for KSNV-DT (now KSNV) 2014, won 4 Pacific Southwest Regional Emmy Awards for KSNV-DT (now KSNV) 2015, nominated 3 Pacific Southwest Regional Emmy Awards for KSNV-DT (now KSNV) 2016, won Pacific Southwest Regional Emmy Award for KSNV