Ray Taliaferro
Encyclopedia
Rafael "Ray" Taliaferro (born February 7, 1939) is an American
radio host
and liberal
political commentator. His early-morning talk show
, simply called The Early Show, airs on KGO News Talk 810
in the San Francisco Bay Area
.
. His principal role is as the host of a Monday through Friday phone-in radio talk show
that airs between 1 A.M. to 5 A.M. The program is simply known as the "Early Show" and primarily consists of lively (and sometimes confrontational) discussion of contemporary issues in American politics, culture, and current events. The program has been on the air in this format and time slot since 1986. Taliaferro also routinely participates in charity and promotional events as a spokesman, moderator and panelist.
Taliaferro has been in broadcasting for over 40 years. He started in talk radio in 1967 at San Francisco's KNEW (AM)
. Shortly thereafter, he also got into television, commuting every day to Burbank to host a show on KHJ-TV (KCAL-TV
) before accepting a news anchor position at San Francisco's KRON-TV
. Taliaferro joined KGO Radio in 1977, when he also co-hosted KGO-TV
's AM Weekend program.
Taliaferro is claimed to be the first African American
talk show host on a major market radio station in the country. He helped found the National Association of Black Journalists
in 1975, and was honored by the San Francisco Black Chamber of Commerce in 1994 with the Black Chamber Life Award, recognizing him as a "forerunner in broadcasting." Taliaferro was inducted into the National Hall of Fame in 2011 at the Newseum Washington,D.C.http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_17102509
Taliaferro aired the last interview (a 58 minute interview) done with Walter Cronkite
on his Monday, July 27, 2009 program, following the news of Cronkite's passing.
affecting the United States and the state of California
. He can best be described as a progressive Democrat and is one of the most prominent left-wing
talk show hosts in America. He is known for his consistently strong (and often strident) criticisms of George W. Bush
and other prominent conservative
politicians, as well as conservatives who call his show. The Taliaferro show rarely features guest interviews, but does periodically feature special broadcasts related to poetry and music.
Taliaferro discussed "scary" callers in a November 1988 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, noting that several women have shown up at the station to meet him and he has had to get security to stop them.
Taliaferro is a life long Democrat, and endorsed Barack Obama
for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination and election.
Among his many achievements, Taliaferro served as president of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP and the Frederick Douglass Symposium. Because of his tremendous efforts to help raise money for leukemia research, he was named board president of the Northern California Chapter of the Leukemia Society of America for 1995 through 2000. He was the Mayor's Commissioner of the War Memorial Trustee Board from 1992 through 2000, and he headed up the San Francisco Art Commission for 16 years. He has hosted events and currently serves as a member of the Board of Governors of The Commonwealth Club of California
.
district of San Francisco. An accomplished musician, Taliaferro conducted the "Ray Tal Chorale" and served as director of music for the Third Baptist Church.
Taliaferro was president of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP from 1968 to 1971.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
radio host
Radio personality
A radio personality is a person with an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality can be someone who introduces and discusses various genres of music, hosts a talk radio show that may take calls from listeners, or someone whose primary responsibility is to give news, weather,...
and liberal
Liberalism in the United States
Liberalism in the United States is a broad political philosophy centered on the unalienable rights of the individual. The fundamental liberal ideals of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion for all belief systems, and the separation of church and state, right to due process...
political commentator. His early-morning talk show
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...
, simply called The Early Show, airs on KGO News Talk 810
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 the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
.
Broadcast career
Taliaferro is currently an on-air personality for KGO NEWSTALK AM 810KGO (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...
. His principal role is as the host of a Monday through Friday phone-in radio talk show
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...
that airs between 1 A.M. to 5 A.M. The program is simply known as the "Early Show" and primarily consists of lively (and sometimes confrontational) discussion of contemporary issues in American politics, culture, and current events. The program has been on the air in this format and time slot since 1986. Taliaferro also routinely participates in charity and promotional events as a spokesman, moderator and panelist.
Taliaferro has been in broadcasting for over 40 years. He started in talk radio in 1967 at San Francisco's KNEW (AM)
KNEW (AM)
KNEW is a radio station in San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, CA, USA. The station is owned by Clear Channel. Prior to the format change, the station operated as CNET Radio, offering business and technology news 24 hours a day...
. Shortly thereafter, he also got into television, commuting every day to Burbank to host a show on KHJ-TV (KCAL-TV
KCAL-TV
KCAL-TV, channel 9, is an independent television station in Los Angeles, California, USA, owned by the CBS Corporation. KCAL-TV shares its studio facilities with KCBS-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson.-Digital...
) before accepting a news anchor position at San Francisco's KRON-TV
KRON-TV
KRON-TV, virtual channel 4 , is a television station in San Francisco, California, serving as the Bay Area affiliate of the MyNetworkTV programming service; the station is owned by Young Broadcasting...
. Taliaferro joined KGO Radio in 1977, when he also co-hosted KGO-TV
KGO-TV
KGO-TV, channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, based in San Francisco, California...
's AM Weekend program.
Taliaferro is claimed to be the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
talk show host on a major market radio station in the country. He helped found the National Association of Black Journalists
National Association of Black Journalists
The National Association of Black Journalists is an organization of African American journalists, students, and media professionals. Founded in 1975 in Washington, D.C...
in 1975, and was honored by the San Francisco Black Chamber of Commerce in 1994 with the Black Chamber Life Award, recognizing him as a "forerunner in broadcasting." Taliaferro was inducted into the National Hall of Fame in 2011 at the Newseum Washington,D.C.http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_17102509
Taliaferro aired the last interview (a 58 minute interview) done with Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
on his Monday, July 27, 2009 program, following the news of Cronkite's passing.
Broadcast persona and format
Taliaferro's nighttime talk show mainly deals with political issuesPolitics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
affecting the United States and the state of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. He can best be described as a progressive Democrat and is one of the most prominent left-wing
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
talk show hosts in America. He is known for his consistently strong (and often strident) criticisms of George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
and other prominent conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
politicians, as well as conservatives who call his show. The Taliaferro show rarely features guest interviews, but does periodically feature special broadcasts related to poetry and music.
Taliaferro discussed "scary" callers in a November 1988 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, noting that several women have shown up at the station to meet him and he has had to get security to stop them.
Taliaferro is a life long Democrat, and endorsed Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination and election.
Public service
Although Taliaferro is widely known for his role as an on-air radio personality, he has also been personally acknowledged for his active involvement in the arts and community service. A native San Franciscan, Taliaferro has dedicated considerable time and energy to public service.Among his many achievements, Taliaferro served as president of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP and the Frederick Douglass Symposium. Because of his tremendous efforts to help raise money for leukemia research, he was named board president of the Northern California Chapter of the Leukemia Society of America for 1995 through 2000. He was the Mayor's Commissioner of the War Memorial Trustee Board from 1992 through 2000, and he headed up the San Francisco Art Commission for 16 years. He has hosted events and currently serves as a member of the Board of Governors of The Commonwealth Club of California
Commonwealth Club of California
The Commonwealth Club of California is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. Founded in 1903, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in the United States...
.
Personal background
Taliaferro grew up in the Hunters PointHunters Point, San Francisco, California
Bayview-Hunters Point or The Bayview, is a neighborhood in the southeastern corner of San Francisco, California, United States. The decommissioned Hunters Point Naval Shipyard is located within its boundaries and Candlestick Park is on the southern edge....
district of San Francisco. An accomplished musician, Taliaferro conducted the "Ray Tal Chorale" and served as director of music for the Third Baptist Church.
Taliaferro was president of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP from 1968 to 1971.
Cultural impact
- Overnight Radio Talk Show Host , is Sampled by Brian EnoBrian EnoBrian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
and David ByrneDavid ByrneDavid Byrne may refer to:*David Byrne , musician and former Talking Heads frontman**David Byrne , his eponymous album*David Byrne , Irish footballer*David Byrne , English footballer...
for "America Is Waiting" the first track of My Life in the Bush of GhostsMy Life in the Bush of Ghosts (album)The album was recorded entirely with analogue technology, before the advent of digital sequencing and MIDI. The sampled voices were synchronized with the instrumental tracks via trial and error, a practice that was often frustrating, but which also produced several happy accidents.Also according to...
recorded at Wally Heider StudiosWally Heider StudiosWally Heider Studios was a recording studio in San Francisco, California between 1969 and 1980, started by recording engineer and studio owner Wally Heider.-History:...
(245 Hyde Street) around the corner from 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...
(then at 277 Golden Gate Ave).
External links
- KGO History - Some Events of the Past Decade (Unofficial)