Sean Cowan joined Business News as managing editor in 2020. Prior to joining this publication, Mr Cowan spent three years as managing editor, Western Australia at Australian Community Media as that company went through a demerger from Fairfax/Nine.
He began his career at The West Australian newspapers in 1998, spending time as the Karratha Bureau reporter, courts reporter, legal affairs writer, chief crime reporter, freedom of information editor and then as an investigative journalist with a roving brief. During this period, he was WA Journalist of the Year on three occasions.
Mr Cowan also has four years of experience as a lecturer in journalism at Curtin University, during which time he was awarded a first-class honours in history for his thesis on the early history of football in Western Australia. In addition to his work in journalism, Mr Cowan has twice judged the West Australian of the Year awards, is a member of the WA Football Commission's heritage committee and is a selector for the WA Institute of Sport's Hall of Champions.
Just days into his term as Perth Lord Mayor, Basil Zempilas will be the subject of a city protest this weekend over comments he made about gender identity on morning radio.
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has told its 470 Perth-based employees that it will be slashing local jobs but offering some of them positions in other states.
The state government has reported a $1.7 billion budget surplus during one of the worst downturns in the country's history, helped by a $945 million boost in royalty income.
The total amount of funds managed by the Government Employees Superannuation Board fell by $200 million in the past financial year as a result of the COVID-19 downturn.
Revenue at Perth's Crown Casino fell by more than $140 million in the past financial year after the venue was forced to close for three months because of COVID-19, while the number of visitors also fell by 2 million.
UPDATE: 40 new names added to the list of Western Australian business leaders whose details appear in a massive database being maintained by a Chinese company with government links.
WA Football Commission chief executive officer Gavin Taylor will leave the organisation at the end of the season to take up a position on the east coast.
Clive Palmer has warned that mining companies would be wary of investing in WA after the state government moved to legislate its way out of a dispute with the mining magnate.
Mineral Resources' move to Subiaco appears doomed after the mining services company agreed to terms this week with construction giant BGC on a property in Walters Drive, Herdsman.
Plans to relocate Mineral Resources' headquarters into the $110 million SubiXO development are in doubt over concerns about structural issues at the Hay St property.
Brownes Dairy has moved back into the local cheddar cheese market, launching a WA-made range in an effort to appeal to consumers on this side of the Nullarbor.
In this podcast Sean Cowan, Matt Mckenzie and Katie McDonald discuss COVID-19 re-emerges, property & construction, Advanced Navigation, WA insolvencies, growth in corporate finance, Cormann, Alcoa, iron ore, and regional development.
PODCAST: Mark Beyer and Sean Cowan discuss phase four COVID restrictions, aviation and tourism, Deloitte, retail property landlords, housing recovery, planning reform, some positive market news, Canva, and our special report on indigenous business.
PODCAST: Mark Pownall and Sean Cowan discuss markets jump, eviction moratorium, airline and media deals, Rob Scott, Crown Resorts, Pioneer Credit, and our special report on the past quarter's deals.