Bowen Dou

Bowen Dou has been overseeing content creation for ESPN’s partnership with China’s largest digital company Tencent since its inauguration in February 2016. Bowen spearheads both the production and editorial divisions for this important company initiative, leading a team of bilingual producers, reporters and editors to provide live mandarin sideline reporting, culturally authentic features, and breaking news coverage to Chinese fans from all major US and global sporting events.

Prior to heading the China partnership, Bowen was instrumental at technologically transforming ESPN’s newsgathering operations. As the Project Leader for ESPN’s Cross Platform News Gathering Unit from 2011 to 2016, Bowen oversaw the implementation of new technologies for field producers and remote studios, building the producer-operated camera kits, creating and executing a training program, and managing live streaming backpacks and mobile apps, all still currently deployed in the field. The mobile-app based home studio set-up that Bowen developed has been pivotal during the COVID-19 crisis when most of the on-air talent are sheltering at home.

Bowen joined ESPN in 2008 to launch the 9 a.m. ET live SportsCenter, SportsCenter.com, and its original digital content and programming. Prior to ESPN, Bowen worked at the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, and the weekend edition of the Today Show on NBC.

Bowen was a 2007 Summer Fellow for International Radio and Television Society’s Summer Fellowship Program, and the recipient of the Barry Sherman Fellow Award for Achievements in Media.

Bowen graduated with a Master’s Degree in Broadcast and Cinematic Arts from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Information and Media from Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University in Japan.

Bowen is from Tianjin, China and is a native speaker of Mandarin Chinese.