Shannon A. Bowen
Shannon A. Bowen is Associate Professor in the Public Relations Department of the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University. Bowen specializes in public relations ethics, strategic communication management, and public relations pedagogy. Bowen’s Ph.D. (2000) is from the University of Maryland, working with James and Larissa Grunig. Her dissertation, “A theory of ethical issues management: Contributions of Kantian deontology to public relations’ ethics and decision making” won the International Communication Association’s Public Relations Division Outstanding Dissertation Award for 2000-2002.
As a pollster and research analyst for the firm American Viewpoint, Bowen designed research and strategy for clients including Philip Morris, Dow Corning, Newt Gingrigh, Gramm for President, Dole for President, pro-bono clients, and numerous gubernatorial, congressional, and senatorial candidates. Prior to her 3 years as a research analyst, she worked on Capitol Hill as a public relations specialist for Congressman Floyd D. Spence, Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on National Security. Her professional background helped her earn the ability to conduct participant observation research in the two of the world’s leading pharmaceutical firms as part of her doctoral study in public relations and marketing.
Bowen has won numerous top faculty paper awards, and published research in the top journals of the field, such as: Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Public relations Research, Journal of Public Affairs, Public Relations Review, Journal of Applied Communication Research, Journal of Communication Management, International Journal of Strategic Communication, and so on. She served as an editorial advisor to the Sage Encyclopedia of Public Relations, and wrote numerous entries for the two-volume set. She was contributing author to the 9th edition of Cutlip, Center, and Broom’s (2005) Effective Public Relations, the leading principles of public relations textbook in the discipline. Bowen has also authored nine book chapters on diverse topics ranging from teaching public relations to Enron, the SARS outbreak, and the ethics of terrorism reporting by the news media.
Bowen also reaches out to the professional community. She has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and many other newspapers. She conducts radio interviews related to corporate ethics, and has conducted training of executives and public relations professionals in Germany, Hong Kong, Beijing, the UK, and domestically.
