Jessica Rowe
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 Jessica Rowe in the 2006 version of Nine Network's Still The One promotion |
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| Born: | 1971 |
|---|---|
| Occupation: | Nine Network Journalist |
| Spouse: | Peter Overton |
| Children: | Allegra Penelope Overton |
Jessica Rowe (born 1971) is an Australian television journalist and presenter. Rowe attended Sydney Girls High School in Sydney, and completed a Communications degree at Charles Sturt University in Bathurst.
At 22 years old, Jessica started her career at Channel Nine as a receptionist for Nine's Wide World of Sport. She made her on-air debut as a weather presenter on Prime Television in Canberra. She was later spotted by Network Ten executives, and was made a main newsreader. She read Ten Sydney's flagship 5pm Ten News bulletin with Ron Wilson for almost 11 years, from the beginning of 1995 until the end of 2005.
After an affair that began secretly in mid-2001, Rowe married Nine's 60 Minutes reporter Peter Overton on January 12, 2004. A year later, according to the Australian Women's Weekly, Jessica found she was unable to have children, and was later diagnosed with a hormonal problem that prevented her ovaries from producing the eggs necessary to produce a child. She resorted to having IVF treatment in order to become pregnant.
In 2005 Rowe signed a contract valued at $500,000 to host the Nine Network's Today Show, which she has co-hosted with Karl Stefanovic since late January 2006. Ten took Rowe to court over her defection, claiming that a clause in their contract with Rowe prevented her from starting at Nine until June 2006. The case was dismissed on December 30, 2005[1], allowing Rowe to debut on the show January 30, 2006.
Rowe's early tenure with the Nine Network's Today Show has not been without its problems. There has been public criticism of her presentation style on this breakfast television show, a style which has been perceived by many as "annoying"[2]. Additionally, Rowe was embarrassed on May 30, 2006 by a gaffe in which Australian Brigadier Michael Slater revealed during a live cross that the interview from Dili, East Timor was being stage managed[3] [4]. Nine Network CEO Eddie McGuire made a public statement in June 2006 stating the claims Rowe was to be "sacked" were part of a "a malicious and unprecedented vilification campaign"[5]. This followed a claim in an affidavit from Nine's former head of news Mark Llewellyn that McGuire had threatened to "bone" Jessica Rowe during a meeting with executives [6]. On July 26, 2006, she fell down six stairs at her Sydney home and suffered a broken wrist, but her unborn baby was uninjured.[7] She went back to work on the Today show on the following Monday.[8]
On July 21, Jessica Rowe announced on the Today Show that she was 3½ months pregnant. Further, in an interview with the Australian Women's Weekly of August 22, 2006, she said that her baby is due on January 22, 2007. The baby was conceived after four IVF attempts[9]. She went on maternity leave from the Today show on December 8, 2006. She has been temporarily replaced by Sarah Murdoch.[10]
Rowe gave birth to daughter Allegra Penelope Overton on January 18, 2007. She was born three days ahead of her due date. [1]
| Preceded by Tracy Grimshaw |
Today Co-Host with Karl Stefanovic from 2006 {{{years}}} |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Juanita Phillips |
Ten News Co-host in Sydney with Ron Wilson {{{years}}} |
Succeeded by Deborah Knight |
| Presenters of The Today Show |
|---|
| Steve Liebmann - Sue Kellaway - Patrice Newell - Liz Hayes - George Negus - Tracy Grimshaw - Karl Stefanovic - Jessica Rowe - Sarah Murdoch - Kellie Connolly |
[edit] References
- ^ "Court clears Rowe's move to Nine", ABC news online, 2005-12-30. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ "Jessica's annoying", The Australian, 2006-06-11.
- ^ "Brigadier tells it like it is", The Age, 2006-05-31. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ "Brigadier catches Nine off guard", SMH, 2006-05-30. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ "McGuire forced to back star", The Australian, 2006-06-29.
- ^ "McGuire hits back", SMH, 2006-07-02. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ "Rowe breaks wrist in fall", The Age, 2006-07-27.
- ^ "Rowe back with a smile", 2006-07-31.
- ^ "A Rowe of hurdles", The Daily Telegraph, 2006-08-22.
- ^ "Murdoch takes summer job in the Packer camp", The Australian, 2006-11-11. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
