Jerry Bowyer

Last updated

Gerald "Jerry" Bowyer (born 1962) [1] is an American investment manager, author, and columnist. He is a former radio and broadcasting host who has also been extensively involved in public affairs, political writing, and investment activities.

Contents

Early career

Bowyer, an accountant at the time, [1] began what his biography calls his "first professional position" in 1990 at Arthur Andersen, then one of the six largest accounting firms in the United States. He left the firm in 1993 to work briefly as the vice president of the Beechwood Company, the holding company for Federated Investors, a mutual fund business. [2]

Media

Bowyer started in broadcast media in 1993 as the host of WPIT-FM’s Cross-Town Perspectives program. [2] Beginning in October 1999, he hosted The Jerry Bowyer Program on WPTT radio in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a live 3-hour program focusing on business, politics and current events. He left WPTT in July 2005. [3]

Beginning in September 2005, Bowyer was the host on an afternoon show on Christian talk radio station WORD-FM in Pittsburgh. [2] He left in February 2006 after suffering chest pains after cross-country skiing. Bowyer posted a message to listeners citing an ongoing stress-related illness and the need to scale back. [4]

Bowyer has also been on many television programs. He is the former host of religious broadcaster Cornerstone TeleVision’s syndicated program Focus on the Issues. [2] He also previously hosted Pennsylvania Newsmakers, a public affairs television program that airs through much of Pennsylvania. [5]

Bowyer is also the former host of WorldView, a Sunday-morning political talk show that is syndicated on approximately 2 dozen TV stations. In his bio, Bowyer mentions interviews done for the show that include those of Vice President Dick Cheney; Lynne Cheney, the Vice President’s wife; Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; Presidential advisor Karl Rove; former Attorney General Edwin Meese; and publisher and former Republican presidential candidate Steve Forbes. [2]

Bowyer has also been a guest on television programs, and has received criticism for statements surrounding universal healthcare potentially being exploited as vulnerability to terrorism. [6]

Public affairs and political writing

In 1993, Bowyer was the founding president of the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. [2] The institute's "political arm" was the Allegheny Institute Taxpayer Coalition. [7] In January 1997, the Pittsburgh Business Times reported that the "views of [Bowyer's] conservative think tank, the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy, were informally adopted last year by the newly elected Republican county commission majority." [1]

The institute was launched by Richard Mellon Scaife [8] and has been funded in large part by the various Scaife Foundations; [1] of the $3.8 million in grants to the Institute between 1995 and 2005, more than $3.5 million came from four of those foundations. [9]

Bowyer resigned as head of the institute in early 2001 to spend more time with his radio and television activities. He was succeeded by Jake Haulk, PhD, a long-time employee of the institute. [10]

Bowyer is the author of The Bush Boom: How a Misunderestimated President Fixed a Broken Economy, published by Allegiance Press in October 2003, [11] and The Free Market Capitalist's Survival Guide: How to Invest and Thrive in an Era of Rampant Socialism, published by HarperCollins in February 2011. [12]

He is a weekly contributor to Forbes.com, [13] and an occasional contributor to Forbes magazine. [14] He also occasionally contributes to The Wall Street Journal. [15]

Business interests

Bowyer was chairman of the board of Impact Total Return Portfolio, a mutual fund. [2] (also known as "IMPACT Management Investment Trust"). [16] He was an economic advisor to Independence Portfolio Partners [2] and a member of the investment committee of Blue Vase Capital Management. [17] He was also a director of Gundaker/Jordan American Holdings, a financial services company, from May 2001 [18] until late 2002. [19]

Bowyer is the founder of Newsmakers Leadership Group, [20] "a research and media company targeted at leaders", and its research and consulting arm, Verity Research & Media. Verity produces the Pennsylvania Newsmakers show, and does other research and media work. [2] He is also the chairman of Bowyer Media, [21] a company specializing in radio and television production, print and internet publishing, and economic analysis. [22]

Jerry Bowyer is an economist for the Ronald Blue & Co. Investment Policy Committee, where he has helped to develop an approach to economics and investment known as Principled Reasoning. [23] Principled Reasoning seeks to replace predominant academic models for portfolio risk assessment which are based on variability or volatility [24] with models based on adherence with certain fundamental principles of human flourishing. According to a Principled Reasoning approach to risk, when nations violate fundamental principles they add inherent risk to their investment climate requiring higher risk premiums in valuations in order to compensate for the higher risk level.

Personal

Bowyer graduated from Robert Morris University. He lives in Boston, Pennsylvania, with his wife, Susan. The two have home-schooled their seven children, four of whom are from his first wife. [21] [25]

In the early 1990s, Bowyer was the executive director of the National Reform Association, an organization with close ties to the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, . He since has distanced himself from reformed and presbyterian theology and polity. He called for creation of a "theocracy" in America: "Christocracy, the rule of Christ over the nation," he called it once, according to a 1999 Washington Post article. [8] Bowyer changed his position on religion and state in the mid 90s and frequently asserted his disagreements with the religious right and agreements with the position of the founding fathers on his radio program.[ citation needed ]

Bowyer has previously blogged on crosswalk.com, a "Christ-centered, for-profit corporation", [26] and is an Anglican Vestryman. [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allegheny College</span> Private liberal arts college in Meadville, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Allegheny College is a private liberal arts college in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1815, Allegheny is the oldest college in continuous existence under the same name west of the Allegheny Mountains. It is a member of the Great Lakes Colleges Association and the Presidents' Athletic Conference and it is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Mellon Scaife</span> American Mellon family heir, and newspaper owner (1932–2014)

Richard Mellon Scaife was an American billionaire, a principal heir to the Mellon banking, oil, and aluminum fortune, and the owner and publisher of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. In 2005, Scaife was number 238 on the Forbes 400, with a personal fortune of $1.2 billion. By 2013, Scaife had dropped to number 371 on the listing, with a personal fortune of $1.4 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPNT</span> The CW/MyNetworkTV affiliate in Pittsburgh

WPNT is a television station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, affiliated with The CW and MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside Fox affiliate WPGH-TV. The two stations share studios on Ivory Avenue in the city's Summer Hill section, where WPNT's transmitter is also located.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPGH-TV</span> TV station in Pittsburgh

WPGH-TV is a television station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside dual CW and MyNetworkTV affiliate WPNT. The two stations share studios on Ivory Avenue in the city's Summer Hill neighborhood, where WPGH-TV's transmitter is also located.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh</span> United States historic place

Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh is a nonprofit organization that operates four museums in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The organization is headquartered in the Carnegie Institute and Library complex in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh. The Carnegie Institute complex, which includes the original museum, recital hall, and library, was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 30, 1979.

Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) is a public community college in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. With four campuses and four centers, the college offers associate degrees, certificates, and diplomas.

Cordelia Scaife May was a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-area political donor and philanthropist. An heiress to the Mellon-Scaife family fortune, she was one of the wealthiest women in the United States. Her philanthropy and political causes included environmentalism, birth control and family planning; overpopulation control measures, making English the official language of the United States, and strict immigration restrictions to the United States. According to The New York Times, "she bankrolled the founding and operation of the nation’s three largest restrictionist groups—the Federation for American Immigration Reform, NumbersUSA and the Center for Immigration Studies," and she left the bulk of her assets to the Colcom Foundation, whose major activity has been the sponsorship of immigration restriction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas J. Murphy Jr.</span> American politician

Thomas J. Murphy Jr. is an American former politician and city management consultant from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He served in state government in two capacities, from 1979 to 1982 representing the 17th district, and from 1983 to 1993 representing the 20th district. From January 1994 until January 2006 he served as mayor of Pittsburgh. Murphy is also a former senior resident fellow for urban development at the Urban Land Institute. Murphy is now a principal with Urban Development Advisors LLC, providing expert advice to communities to help them understand what drives real estate investment, sustainable land use practices, economic development and ensures long-lasting community commitment.

WPCB-TV is a television station licensed to Greensburg, Pennsylvania, United States, serving the Pittsburgh area as the flagship of the religious network Cornerstone Television. Cornerstone originates most of its programs from this station. WPCB-TV's studios and transmitter are co-located on Signal Hill Drive in Wall, Pennsylvania.

The Scaife Foundations refer collectively to three foundations in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The three subdivisions are: the Allegheny Foundation, the Sarah Scaife Foundation, and the Scaife Family Foundation. A fourth foundation, the Carthage Foundation, was folded into the Sarah Scaife Foundation in 2014. From 2003 to 2010, the foundations were among the largest contributors to the climate change denial movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pittsburgh Cable News Channel</span> Television channel

The Pittsburgh Cable News Channel (PCNC) is a cable news channel and digital subchannel of WPXI serving the Western Pennsylvania area. It is owned by Cox Media Group. PCNC simulcasts or replays much of WPXI's programming. It continues to produce two original talk shows, "Pittsburgh Now" and "Night Talk", along with local news and regional business news.

Allegheny Health Network (AHN), based in Pittsburgh, is a non-profit, 14-hospital academic medical system with facilities located in Western Pennsylvania and one hospital in Western New York. AHN was formed in 2013 when Highmark Inc., a Pennsylvania-based Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance carrier, purchased the assets of the West Penn Allegheny Health System and added three more hospitals to its provider division. Allegheny Health Network was formed to act as the parent company to the WPAHS hospitals and its affiliate hospitals. Highmark Health today serves as the ultimate parent of AHN.

The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 to support the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omni William Penn Hotel</span> Pittsburgh PA hotel

The Omni William Penn Hotel is a 23 floor hotel located at 530 William Penn Place on Mellon Square in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A variety of luminaries have stayed at the hotel, including John F. Kennedy. The hotel staff innovated Lawrence Welk's now famous bubble machine, and it was the site of Bob Hope's marriage proposal in 1934. The hotel has won numerous awards including being named to the "Best of Weddings 2009" list by The Knot and receiving the Editor's Choice Award in the Business Hotels category on Suite101.com.

Dennis Roddy is an American journalist who was special assistant to former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, and a former columnist for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

NexTier Bank is an American financial services corporation that has 30 branches located in Allegheny, Butler, Armstrong, Westmoreland, Mercer, Clearfield, and Cumberland counties in western and central Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everette James</span>

Everette James is Professor of Health Policy and Management at the University of Pittsburgh and Director of the University of Pittsburgh’s Health Policy Institute (HPI).

Robert Ward Duggan served as Allegheny County District Attorney in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for a decade, from January 1964 until his shooting death under mysterious circumstances in March 1974. He had been under investigation by then-United States District Attorney Richard Thornburgh for corruption.

Principled reasoning is an alternative to modern portfolio theory based on a different conception of risk.

The Economic Club of Pittsburgh is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States since 1910. It is among the oldest and largest organizations of its type in the U.S. providing a distinguished public forum for intelligent, timely discussions of economic matter of regional, national, and international importance and their interaction with both the social and political environment. The club has attracted nationally and internationally known speakers for the regular meetings for open discussions between speakers and members.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Dan Fitzpatrick, "Allegheny County: a poster child for privatization? Jerry Bowyer has the ear of Republican commissioners", Pittsburgh Business Times , January 3, 1997
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Jerry Bowyer bio
  3. Radio Notes: WPTT makes changes to format, schedule, June 25 2005
  4. WORD host Jerry Bowyer on indefinite leave", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 8, 2006
  5. "Conservative Crusader, Jerry Bowyer". Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2013-03-25.
  6. Washington Monthly: National healthcare = Terrorism. July 6, 2007. Accessed February 14, 2015.
  7. Annie O'Neill, The Regional Asset District board's 6-1 approval of Plan B pleases County Commissioner Bob Cranmer and Mayor Murphy Archived 2018-10-15 at the Wayback Machine , Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 10, 1998, accessed July 6, 2007
  8. 1 2 Ira Chinoy and Robert G. Kaiser, Decades of Contributions to Conservatism, Washington Post, May 2, 1999
  9. Allegheny Institute for Public Policy - Recipient grants Archived 2007-09-26 at the Wayback Machine , mediatransparency.org, accessed July 6, 2007; Scaife foundations are listed here
  10. Message from the President (pdf) Archived 2007-07-08 at the Wayback Machine , Policy Brief, Allegheny Institute for Public Policy, March 20, 2001
  11. The Bush Boom: How a Misunderestimated President Fixed a Broken Economy, ISBN   978-1-59467-087-9
  12. The Free Market Capitalist's Survival Guide: How to Invest and Thrive in an Era of Rampant Socialism, ISBN   978-0-06182-484-5
  13. Forbes.com, Jerry Bowyer
  14. Forbes February 2012 edition, page 30
  15. "Pennsylvania's Tea Party: Brewing for Years", Jerry Bowyer, April 24 2010
  16. Gundaker/Jordan American Holdings Inc SEC filing, form PRE 14A dated 7/23/02
  17. About Blue Vase Capital Management, accessed July 6, 2007
  18. Gundaker/Jordan American Holdings Inc SEC filing, form PRER14A dated 9/17/01
  19. Gundaker/Jordan American Holdings Inc SEC filing, form 10KSB, for the period ending 12/31/02
  20. "The Gospel According to Saint Marx", Jerry Bowyer, National Review Online, November 6 2006
  21. 1 2 3 Jerry Bower, "Mary and the Wise Guy", Orthodoxy Today, July 3, 2007
  22. "Record Breaking, or Broken Record?", Jerry Bowyer, National Review Online, February 13, 2003
  23. Principled Reasoning: An Economic Worldview, ASIN B0091YWU5O
  24. Bernstein, Peter L. (20 June 2005). Capital Ideas: The Improbable Origins of Modern Wall Street. ISBN   978-0471731740.
  25. Jerry Bowyer Profile, at CNBC.com, accessed January 10, 2008
  26. Crosswalk.com, "About Us", accessed July 6, 2007