Audra Lowe

Audra Lowe
Born	Los Angeles, CA, U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	UC Santa Barbara (B.A. in Communications, B.A. in Black Studies) UCLA (Master of Arts)
Occupation	Talk show host, journalist, entrepreneur
Years active	1989-present
Spouse(s)	Married
Children	1 (born 2010)

Audra Lowe is an American talk show host, journalist, and entrepreneur. For 6 seasons (2007-2013), she was the Host of the nationally syndicated lifestyle television program The Better Show. In 2012, Lowe also became the host of The Broadway Channel.

Lowe has twenty-four years of combined journalistic experience in entertainment, sports, and news. She has covered a variety of topics and events, including the September 11th attacks, the Oklahoma City bombing, the O. J. Simpson trial, and the Rodney King verdict. From 2004-2007, she provided sports news updates as the host of Fox Sports' "FOX Wire", hosted the FOX Entertainment program "FoxNOW", and was one of the first to interview American Idol finalists backstage. She is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ). Since 2001, she has served as an advisor to the Center for Sports & Entertainment, a non-profit organization based in Los Angeles and dedicated to helping young people develop careers in the sports and entertainment industries. Lowe also leads "Broadcasting 101" and Media Training seminars and is a frequent contributor to media discussion panels.^[1]

Early Life and Education

Lowe was born and grew up in Los Angeles, California.^[2] A self-proclaimed "tomboy", Lowe credits her father with developing her love of sports. When she was a child, he introduced her to NBA, NFL, and MLB games and taught her the technical aspects of each sport. Lowe ran track competitively in high school and college, and also participated in gymnastics and other recreational sports.

As a teenager, Lowe took steps towards becoming the first member of her family to pursue a career outside the corporate sector.^[1] She earned both a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and a second Bachelor of Arts degree in Black Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1993. In 1998, she earned her Master of Arts degree from UCLA.

Early career

Lowe's first on-air television job was at KADY-TV in Oxnard, CA, as a reporter. She accidentally landed the job when she worked at the network as an Associate Producer. Every night after work and some weekends, she would practice reading the previous reporter's copy in front of the camera. Unbeknownst to her, the KADY-TV News Director, Dan Green, was watching and a year later, when one of the reporters called in sick, he asked Lowe to step in as a replacement. She then continued to work as both a reporter and an Associate Producer for several years.

The Better Show

Lowe was the Host of The Better Show, a nationally syndicated lifestyle television program produced by the Meredith Corporation. The hour-long morning talk show is dedicated to topics that make "better" and features a range of subjects including family life, finance, entertainment, food, and health.^[3] Lowe joined the show as its New York host when it went into national syndication in 2007. She was originally co-host with Kimberly Maus, based in Portland, Oregon. Maus left the show a year later, and Lowe became the main host. In 2011, she met JD Roberto and recommended him to work alongside her. He joined The Better Show as Lowe's co-host at the beginning of Season 5 in September 2011.

According to The Better Show website, Lowe has been "highly instrumental" in expanding the visibility of the show by over 600%, from 12 to 180 markets nationwide. She is responsible for creating and producing numerous segments, including "Ask the Doctors" and "The Lowe Down", which gives viewers an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the taping of each show. "The Lowe Down" is posted daily on The Better Show's website. It received over 1,200 hits within the first few hours of its debut, more than any other online segment for that time frame.^[1]

Lowe has interviewed a number of high-profile celebrities on The Better Show, including: Jessica Alba, Ne-Yo, the Kardashians, La Toya Jackson, NASCAR driver Carl Edwards, Gladys Knight, LL Cool J, Laila Ali, Olivia Newton-John, Melissa McCarthy, Jane Seymour, Jamie Lee Curtis, Chris Noth, Tyrese, Olympic snowboarder Shaun White, Lisa Ling, Vanessa Williams, Dina Eastwood, BeBe Winans, and Pat Benatar. Other notable interviewees include President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.^[1]

In 2012, Lowe was named one of the Top 10 TV Lifestyle Hosts on Twitter based on her Klout score.^[4]

The Broadway Channel

In August 2012, Lowe was named host of The Broadway Channel's "What's Hot on Broadway" segment. The segment features the latest news on Broadway shows and exclusive interviews with stars. Lowe also conducts interviews for The Broadway Channel's red carpet coverage of Broadway opening nights.^[5]

Other Ventures

Radio career

While in college, Lowe worked at KCSB-FM, an educational radio station on the UC Santa Barbara campus, as an anchor and host. After graduation, she was a news associate at KNX in Los Angeles. She also did voice-over work for KJLH Radio in 2006.

Mentorship

Lowe has hosted and participated in numerous discussion panels across the country, including those organized by the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ). She has been a member of the NABJ since 1989, when she was still in college.

In 1995, Lowe began conducting "Broadcasting 101" seminars and Media Training workshops. The "Broadcasting 101" seminars are aimed at helping students interested in pursuing careers in broadcasting. Many participants have continued on to jobs at top-rated stations in major markets across the country.^[6] The Media Training workshops help teach entrepreneurs and other professionals how to promote themselves or their products on television.^[7]

Lowe has also served as an advisor to the Center for Sports & Entertainment (CSE) in Los Angeles since 2001. The CSE is a non-profit organization that helps young people cultivate professional skills by exposing them to various careers in the sports and entertainment industries.^[6]

Entrepreneurship

While pregnant with her first child, Lowe became exasperated with the inappropriate comments and questions she often received. Her response was to develop a line of maternity T-shirts called "Lowe Blow Tees", which launched in 2011. The shirts feature phrases that pregnant women might be too polite to say themselves, in order to preempt unwanted comments.^[7] Some of the slogans include, "Can I PLEASE give birth before you ask if I'd like another?" and "Go ahead. But I get to rub yours first."^[8] She is also in the process of launching a line of products and services aimed at making life "better" in various ways. The line is meant to appeal to all ages and embody Lowe's personal style.^[1]

Lowe is the co-owner of the television production company One Monarch Beach Entertainment.

Personal life

Lowe splits most of her time between New York City and Los Angeles. A self-proclaimed "sports-aholic", she especially loves NASCAR and basketball.^[7] Her pastimes include golf, high performance race car driving, travel, running, yoga, boxing, and interior design.

Lowe is a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. Her personal mantra is a quote from basketball player and coach John Wooden: "Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."^[1]

References

External links

• Audra Lowe Official Website
• Audra Lowe on Twitter
• The Better Show
• The Broadway Channel