William "Bill" Press is a US
talk radioTalk 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, political commentator and author.
Career
Press has a
Bachelor of ArtsA Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in philosophy from
Niagara UniversityNiagara University is a Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition, located in the Town of Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. Originally founded by the Congregation of the Mission in 1856 as Our Lady of Angels Seminary, it became Niagara University in 1883. The University is still run by...
and
Bachelor of Sacred TheologyThe Bachelor of Sacred Theology is a graduate-level academic degree in theology.The Bachelor of Sacred Theology is offered by a number of Pontifical Universities. It is sometimes offered as a graduate degree, for students who have already completed a B.A. or other first degree...
from the
University of FribourgThe University of Fribourg is a university in the city of Fribourg, Switzerland.The roots of the University can be traced back to 1582, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisius founded the Collège Saint-Michel in the City of Fribourg. In 1763, an Academy of law was founded by the state of Frobourg...
. He started his broadcasting career in Los Angeles for TV stations
KABC-TVKABC-TV, channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, licensed to Los Angeles, California. KABC-TV's studios are located in Glendale, California...
and
KCOP-TVKCOP-TV, channel 13, is a television station in Los Angeles, California. Owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, KCOP is a sister station to Fox network outlet KTTV , and is affiliated with the MyNetworkTV programming service...
. He has worked as a political commentator for
CNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
and
MSNBCMSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
. He is best known for co-hosting CNN's
Spin RoomA spin room is an area in which reporters can meet debate participants before or after a debate. The name refers to the fact that the participants will attempt to "spin" or influence the perception of the debate among the assembled reporters.- External links :* Christian Science Monitor: *...
opposite
Tucker CarlsonTucker Swanson McNear Carlson is an American political news correspondent and conservative commentator for the Fox News Channel...
, and
Crossfire and MSNBC's
Buchanan and PressBuchanan & Press was a debate show on MSNBC pairing former Crossfire hosts conservative Pat Buchanan and liberal Bill Press.-External links:* *...
.
Since May 2005 he has been a contributing blogger at
The Huffington PostThe Huffington Post is an American news website and content-aggregating blog founded by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti, featuring liberal minded columnists and various news sources. The site offers coverage of politics, theology, media, business, entertainment, living, style,...
. Press also contributes blogs to the online version of Washington, D.C.'s nonpartisan newspaper,
The HillThe Hill, a subsidiary of News Communications Inc., is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C. since 1994.Its first editor was Martin Tolchin, a veteran correspondent in the Washington bureau of The New York Times....
.
In politics
Press was the chair of the California
Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
from 1993 to 1996. He has previously served in different appointed positions such as a
chief of staffThe title, chief of staff, identifies the leader of a complex organization, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a Principal Staff Officer , who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide to an important individual, such as a president.In general, a chief of...
to
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
California State SenatorThe California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
Peter Behr from 1971 to 1973, and as director of the California Office of Planning and Research under
DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Governor
Jerry BrownEdmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown, Jr. is an American politician. Brown served as the 34th Governor of California , and is currently serving as the 39th California Governor...
from 1975 to 1979.
Radio talk show
Since September 2005, Press has been hosting a daily liberal talk radio program which is broadcast on terrestrial radio affiliates in the United States live from 6-9 AM ET. Originally syndicated by Jones Radio, the radio show is now syndicated by
Dial GlobalDial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management....
. It is also heard on satellite radio, is streamed live from the show's website, and can be downloaded with a podcast subscription.
Religion
Press was steeped in Catholicism from an early age. He was an altar boy and took vows of obedience, poverty and chastity. He describes his young self as a "soldier in God's army" (CNN Politics, March 28, 2002). Press attended (the Catholic) Niagara University and earned a theology degree from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland.
In the 2010 list published by
Talkers magazine, Press was listed amongst the 250 most important talk radio hosts in the United States, but not in the top 100.
Works
- Eyewitness : A California Perspective, 1988. ISBN 0-939061-01-5
- Spin This: All the Ways We Don't Tell the Truth, with a foreword by Bill Maher
William "Bill" Maher, Jr. is an American stand-up comedian, television host, political commentator, author and actor. Before his current role as the host of HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, Maher hosted a similar late-night talk show called Politically Incorrect originally on Comedy Central and...
, 2002. ISBN 0-7434-4267-9
- Bush Must Go!- The Top Ten Reasons Why George Bush Doesn't Deserve a Second Term, 2004. ISBN 0-525-94840-6
- How The Republicans Stole Christmas: The Republican Party's Declared Monopoly on Religion and What Democrats Can Do to Take it Back, 2005. ISBN 0-385-51605-3
- How The Republicans Stole Christmas: Why the Religious Right is Wrong about Faith & Politics and What We Can Do to Make it Right, Doubleday, 2005. ISBN 978-0385-51605-1
- Trainwreck: The End of the Conservative Revolution (and Not a Moment Too Soon), Wiley, 2008. ISBN 978-0470-18240-6
External links