Rowe attended Sydney Girls High School[2] and Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, completing a Bachelor of Arts in 1993.

[3] In 2006, Rowe joined the Nine Network to host the Today breakfast show, alongside Karl Stefanovic, replacing Tracy Grimshaw.

[4] Her arrival at Today was met with initial criticism, including "on-air giggling, absence of serious journalistic credentials and lack of chemistry with co-host Karl Stefanovic".

[6][7] During this time Nine Network CEO Eddie McGuire made a public statement in June 2006 stating that the claims Rowe was to be "sacked" were part of "a malicious and unprecedented vilification campaign"[8] This followed the sworn evidence in an affidavit from Nine Network's former head of news, Mark Llewellyn, that McGuire had threatened to "bone" Rowe during a meeting with executives.

She was also announced as a cast member on the seventh series of Dancing with the Stars[10] alongside Patti Newton and Mark Beretta.

In December 2010, Rowe was appointed news presenter on Weekend Sunrise replacing Sarah Cumming and Sharyn Ghidella.

[13] The gala was held to support White Ribbon Australia, a charity which seeks to raise awareness of violence against women.

[16] The show premiered on 4 November 2013 and alongside Rowe were fellow co-hosts Ita Buttrose, Sarah Harris and Joe Hildebrand.

"[19] In July 2015, Rowe played The Empress in Bonnie Lythgoe's stage production of Aladdin and his Wondrous Lamp at the State Theatre in Sydney, Australia.

[27] Rowe was criticised by various activists for airing the podcast, with 2021 Australian of the Year Grace Tame saying that "Pauline doesn't need help to be heard, but those whose oppression she's both driven and reinforced do.

[28] Later, however, Rowe removed the episode from her podcast, issuing an apology via Twitter and thanking Tame and Indigenous comedian Nakkiah Lui for their comments.

"[27] Rowe's decision to remove the podcast was also criticised by media commentators such as Tim Blair, Joe Hildebrand, Chris Uhlmann, Paul Barry, Peter van Onselen and Neil Mitchell.