Draft:Derek Bowler

Derek Bowler is an Irish investigative journalist, head of social newsgathering at the European Broadcasting Union.

Career
Bowler attended the University of Limerick (UL), graduating with a BA (Hons) in Journalism & New Media. During his time at UL, Bowler was chief reporter, and later editor of the annual newspaper The Limerick Voice. He also co-hosted the rock/metal radio show Transmission on ULFM.

Bowler worked at the Dublin-headquartered social newsgathering agency Storyful. During his time at the company, he co-produced the 2014 mini-documentary One Month In Ferguson - The Death of Michael Brown in collaboration with The Young Turks, using eyewitness media to uncover the events leading to Brown's death in Ferguson, Missouri.

He currently works at the European Broadcasting Union at the organization's headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, where he leads the Eurovision Social Newswire, an eyewitness and video verification service for public service media broadcasters.

In 2023, Bowler was part of an EBU investigative team that uncovered proof of a Kremlin-sponsored initiative to take Ukrainian children from the war-torn country to Russia, a war crime under international law. A second investigation involving Bowler exposed Russia’s aggressive policy of assimilation of territories it has illegally annexed in east Ukraine.

In 2024, Bowler contributed to a book on user-generated content and journalism in the 21st century.

Book contribution

 * "Ethical Use of Eyewitness Content: How Public Service Media Are Rebuilding Trust in News" in Eyewitness Textures: User-Generated Content and Journalism in the Twenty-First Century, Edited by Michael Andrew Lithgow and Michèle Martin. (McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2024)