In Memoriam: Clifford “Cliff” G. Rowe ’58

Clifford “Cliff” G. Rowe ’58 died Jan. 5, 2022, at age 84. The son of Pacific University journalism professor Clifford P. Rowe ’29, Cliff Rowe was a titan of Northwest journalism and a mentor to generations of students at Pacific Lutheran University, where he also taught journalism. After graduating from Pacific, Rowe earned a master’s degree from Northwestern University in 1963 and worked for the Chicago Sun-Times and The Seattle Times. He became a full-time professor in 1980, with a primary interest in media ethics. He contributed to the Washington News Council, a group which publicly reviewed citizen ethics complaints against media organizations. The Society of Professional Journalists’ honored Rowe with a national teaching award in 1995. Former students and colleagues describe him as role model who pushed students to be their best, and someone who was generous with his time and guidance. (Jenni Luckett, executive editor of Pacific Magazine, was one of Rowe’s students at PLU and delighted in coincidentally ending up at his alma mater. “Cliff taught me that journalism, at its heart, is about sharing information and telling stories that empower people to make their world a better place,” she said.) Rowe retired from teaching in 2010, but remained active with PLU’s Department of Communications until 2015. He started writing a column in 2017 called “Cliff’s Edge” in The B Town Blog, until a stroke paused the project. Rowe was preceded in death by his daughter, Petra; and his son, Scott. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Jille (Voerge) Rowe '60; and his son, Stuart.