Peter B. Collins
Encyclopedia
Peter B. Collins is an American
talk radio
host, voiceover
talent, entrepreneur
, and media consultant
based near San Francisco, California
. Until March 20, 2009, he hosted The Peter B. Collins Show, a syndicated liberal talk show "infused with dangerous San Francisco values
like compassion, justice, and a living wage
" based at KRXA
in Monterey, California
, and his show now continues on the internet via listener-supported podcasts. Occasionally, Collins substitute hosts on KGO-AM
in San Francisco.
He often teams with Sibel Edmonds to do interviews for her Boiling Frogs Post.
Growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio
, Collins attended Northwestern University
in Chicago
. At age 19, Collins covered the Watergate scandal
when he was 19 years old. He had a highly-rated nightly talk show at ABC
-owned WLS-FM
in Chicago. In 1976, he went to co-owned KGO
in California
. KCBS-FM
hired him away a few years later to host their morning show, and he remained even after KCBS flipped to an album-oriented rock
format as KRQR in 1982.
In 1989, Collins returned to talk radio with an afternoon program on KNBR
, where he also co-hosted a daily one-hour food and wine show, featuring many acclaimed winemakers and chefs. Rival station KSFO hired him in 1993, also for afternoon drive, when that station adopted a talk
format. Their billboard campaign back then endorsed his show as "a little to the left," playing on his politics and the station's dial position (560 AM). ABC Radio, owner of KGO, purchased KSFO in 1994 and eventually converted it to an all-conservative
talk format, dropping Collins' show.
Since leaving KSFO, Collins has produced other radio shows such as Childhood Matters on KISQ
and began working as a political media consultant.
Collins has lent his voice to hundreds of radio and TV commercials, as well as station promos for television and radio, non-broadcast sales and training programs, CD-ROM
's and voice mail systems. He is also host of Behind the Wheel, a new-car review show that airs on radio stations and on the Internet.
In May 2003, Collins returned to talk radio as host of All-American Talk Radio, which was heard on I.E. America Radio Network
and SIRIUS Left
, as well as via webcast
. The afternoon show evolved into the Peter B. Collins Show, which started airing when he and other investors purchased KRXA
in 2005, and ended on March 20, 2009.
Since 1986, he has served as board president of the Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit based at San Quentin Prison, which provides legal and investigative assistance to allegedly wrongfully convicted inmates in California. He is an officer of the San Francisco Local of AFTRA, the American Federation of TV and Radio Artists, and serves on AFTRA's national board.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
host, voiceover
VoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
talent, entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, and media consultant
Consultant
A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
based near San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Until March 20, 2009, he hosted The Peter B. Collins Show, a syndicated liberal talk show "infused with dangerous San Francisco values
San Francisco values
"San Francisco values" is a term often used pejoratively and as an ad hominem phrase to refer to cultural, social and moral attributes associated with the city of San Francisco, California's liberal politics and pluralist culture...
like compassion, justice, and a living wage
Living wage
In public policy, a living wage is the minimum hourly income necessary for a worker to meet basic needs . These needs include shelter and other incidentals such as clothing and nutrition...
" based at KRXA
KRXA
KRXA is a radio station broadcasting a progressive talk format. Licensed to Carmel Valley, California, USA, the station serves the Santa Cruz area. It is currently owned by KRXA, LLC. The station was founded in July 2005 by attorney Hal Ginsberg and longtime San Francisco broadcaster Peter B....
in Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
, and his show now continues on the internet via listener-supported podcasts. Occasionally, Collins substitute hosts on KGO-AM
KGO (AM)
KGO is a news/talk-format radio station radio with offices and studios in San Francisco, California. Unlike most other American news/talk stations, KGO originates nearly all of its own programming locally. Since 1978, KGO radio has received Arbitron's number-one ranking in the Bay Area...
in San Francisco.
He often teams with Sibel Edmonds to do interviews for her Boiling Frogs Post.
Growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, Collins attended Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. At age 19, Collins covered the Watergate scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
when he was 19 years old. He had a highly-rated nightly talk show at ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
-owned WLS-FM
WZZN
WLS-FM 94.7 FM is a Chicago oldies radio station playing the hits of the late '50s, through the early '80s. The station was founded by ABC, and was sold by Disney to Citadel Broadcasting in 2007; it is now owned by Cumulus Media, following its 2011 merger with Citadel...
in Chicago. In 1976, he went to co-owned KGO
KGO (AM)
KGO is a news/talk-format radio station radio with offices and studios in San Francisco, California. Unlike most other American news/talk stations, KGO originates nearly all of its own programming locally. Since 1978, KGO radio has received Arbitron's number-one ranking in the Bay Area...
in California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. KCBS-FM
KLLC
KLLC is a commercial radio station located in San Francisco, California, broadcasting to the San Francisco Bay Area. KLLC airs an Adult Top 40 music format same as KZZO in Sacramento and on 97.3 HD-2 is Chill With Alice, a Chill format channel...
hired him away a few years later to host their morning show, and he remained even after KCBS flipped to an album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
format as KRQR in 1982.
In 1989, Collins returned to talk radio with an afternoon program on KNBR
KNBR
KNBR, The Sports Leader, is the on-air branding used by two AM radio stations in the San Francisco, California, area broadcasting a sports radio format, owned by Cumulus Media....
, where he also co-hosted a daily one-hour food and wine show, featuring many acclaimed winemakers and chefs. Rival station KSFO hired him in 1993, also for afternoon drive, when that station adopted a talk
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format. Their billboard campaign back then endorsed his show as "a little to the left," playing on his politics and the station's dial position (560 AM). ABC Radio, owner of KGO, purchased KSFO in 1994 and eventually converted it to an all-conservative
American conservatism
Conservatism in the United States has played an important role in American politics since the 1950s. Historian Gregory Schneider identifies several constants in American conservatism: respect for tradition, support of republicanism, preservation of "the rule of law and the Christian religion", and...
talk format, dropping Collins' show.
Since leaving KSFO, Collins has produced other radio shows such as Childhood Matters on KISQ
KISQ
KISQ is a radio station licensed to San Francisco that features the Urban Oldies format on the 98.1 FM frequency. It is owned by Clear Channel.- History :As KABL...
and began working as a political media consultant.
Collins has lent his voice to hundreds of radio and TV commercials, as well as station promos for television and radio, non-broadcast sales and training programs, CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
's and voice mail systems. He is also host of Behind the Wheel, a new-car review show that airs on radio stations and on the Internet.
In May 2003, Collins returned to talk radio as host of All-American Talk Radio, which was heard on I.E. America Radio Network
I.E. America Radio Network
i.e. America Radio Network was a Detroit-based radio network consisting primarily of liberal talk and lifestyle shows. They were owned by the United Auto Workers and broadcast nationally from 1996 to 2004, via radio stations and a webcast.-History:...
and SIRIUS Left
SIRIUS Left
SIRIUS Left was Sirius Satellite Radio's liberal talk channel. It featured personalities such as Lynn Samuels, Bill Press, Alex Bennett, Mike Malloy, Ed Schultz, Thom Hartmann and newcomer Mark Thompson...
, as well as via webcast
Webcast
A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand...
. The afternoon show evolved into the Peter B. Collins Show, which started airing when he and other investors purchased KRXA
KRXA
KRXA is a radio station broadcasting a progressive talk format. Licensed to Carmel Valley, California, USA, the station serves the Santa Cruz area. It is currently owned by KRXA, LLC. The station was founded in July 2005 by attorney Hal Ginsberg and longtime San Francisco broadcaster Peter B....
in 2005, and ended on March 20, 2009.
Since 1986, he has served as board president of the Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit based at San Quentin Prison, which provides legal and investigative assistance to allegedly wrongfully convicted inmates in California. He is an officer of the San Francisco Local of AFTRA, the American Federation of TV and Radio Artists, and serves on AFTRA's national board.