Alec Cowan
Senior Podcast Producer
About
Alec Cowan is a senior podcast producer at KUOW, where he works on Booming and other podcast projects.
Alec has worn many hats at KUOW. He helped launch Soundside and brought many eclectic stories to the program, from a late-night patrol with real life superheroes to the sewing machine sounds of an artisanal sail loft. Additionally, he was previously a producer for The Record with Bill Radke and the Primed podcast.
Before joining KUOW Alec worked in NPR's Story Lab, where he helped pilot the Louder Than a Riot podcast, about hip-hop and mass incarceration, and assisted in producing a story on volunteerism in Iraq for Rough Translation. Originally from Grand Junction, Colorado, his roots in the Northwest begin in Eugene, where he studied English and philosophy at the University of Oregon and worked as a news reporter for NPR member station KLCC. He is likely neglecting his saxophone, growing book collection, and expanding personal project list in favor of boosting his online Xbox ranking.
He's proud to be KUOW's unofficial "boat guy."
Location: Seattle
Languages Spoken: English
Pronouns: he/him/his
Podcasts
Stories
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Public defender shortage slows the wheels of justice in Washington state courts
Prestige TV or Hollywood legal dramas might inform the image: loose tie, crinkled suits, bags under the eyes… public defenders are stressed out, overworked and undercompensated. But something pop culture tends to overlook is how stretching these attorneys so thin affects everyday people caught up in the justice system.
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Safe parking lots are trending, but can the Seattle area meet the need?
Safe parking programs have gained traction in recent years – there are now an estimated dozen lots available across the state, many sponsored by churches. They’re responding to an often invisible problem: people who sleep in their vehicles, with nowhere to legally park and access a restroom. But identifying the need – and ramping up services – are two different challenges.
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WA bill aims to make dancing in strip clubs safer. What would change?
Dancers say working in Washington strip clubs carries a lot of risks, from the physical danger of aggressive customers to the thin financial margins that put dancers at an increased risk of sex trafficking. To try and mitigate some of these issues, Washington legislators are considering SB 6105 – what some are calling the “strippers' bill of rights.”
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Investigation finds utility's security light at fault for devastating Gray Fire
In a report released last week, the Washington Department of Natural Resources says the initial sparks came from a security light mounted on an Inland Power and Light pole. Those sparks ignited nearby brush and the fire quickly raged out of control. The Gray Fire burned 10,000 acres last August, forcing thousands to evacuate and destroying hundreds of homes.
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Rock climbing could change to protect the wild — but will that make it more dangerous?
What does it mean for land to be “wild?” It’s a question that federal land managers have thought about since the Wilderness Act of 1964, which defined wilderness as areas “...untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” Our national parks and public lands have visitor centers, fire lookouts, and other approved "installations" that help us enjoy the wild safely. But just what defines an installation has become the center of a recent debate between rock climbers and conservationists.
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Bremerton walks a fine line between encampment sweeps and available shelters
As homelessness grows around the region, communities are struggling to keep up with a spreading encampment crisis. In Bremerton, the largest city in Kitsap County, growing encampments have forced the city to reconcile with a lack of available shelter space throughout the county.
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Four cases of rare fungus found in WA. Here's what you should know about it
Last month the first-ever local outbreak of Candida auris, a deadly fungus, was reported in Washington State. So far, four cases of infection from the fungus have been linked to Kindred Hospital in Seattle’s First Hill neighborhood. Cases of C. auris -- which was first identified in Japan in 2009 -- have risen throughout the United States since 2016.
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How an Indigenous rights battle in WA changed tribal law, from fishing to culverts
Fifty years ago, a landmark federal court case brought against Washington state reaffirmed the treaty rights of Native Americans to fish in traditional waters and shorelines. From culvert rehab to dam removal, 1974's "Boldt Decision" has expanded far beyond fishing to legally empower tribes' ability to protect natural resources.
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Could studying how dogs age help us understand the ways humans do?
Dogs share so much of their lives with humans and can develop the same health conditions we do, like dementia or diabetes. Those similarities drove researchers to wonder if our medical science can help dogs live longer — and if maybe, our furry friends could tell us something about how we age, too.
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Woolly dogs once provided fleece for Coast Salish tribes. What happened to them?
Outside of alpacas, woolly dogs were one of the few indigenous animals providing wool in the Americas. And for centuries, woolly dogs were at the center of tribal life throughout the Coast Salish world. Since the 19th century, however, these dogs are considered extinct. Today, a resurfaced specimen at the Smithsonian Institution is helping broaden the scientific and tribal understanding of the woolly dog's genetics and role in Coast Salish life.
