Lester Kinsolving
Encyclopedia
Charles Lester Kinsolving (born 1927 in New York City
) is a political talk radio
host, currently heard on WCBM
in Baltimore, Maryland. He is better known, however, as a White House
correspondent
for WorldNetDaily
. His pointed questioning of the President's
press secretaries
has made him a Washington
institution for more than three decades, and earned him a reputation as a gadfly within the corps. It's also sometimes made him the butt of jokes from many comedian
s, including Jon Stewart
on The Daily Show
.
Kinsolving is also a minister
in the Anglican Church. He was a priest
in the Episcopal Church, breaking away in 1978. Throughout the early part of his career, Kinsolving wrote a syndicated
newspaper column about religious issues.
As a reporter and columnist
for the San Francisco Examiner in the 1970s, Kinsolving was the first to report on the Peoples Temple
cult
led by Jim Jones
, six years before the cult's members committed mass suicide
in the jungles of Guyana
; his reporting brought on vocal protesting by the group, and resulted in the newspaper canceling most of his multi-part series and replacing it with a more flattering portrayal of Jones. The episode left him angry with his treatment, and he left the Examiner, finally ending up in Washington, resuming a radio reporting career that began with a four-year stint at KCBS-FM
in Sacramento, California
.
His reputation was damaged in 1977, when Washington Post reporter Walter Pincus reported that Kinsolving had accepted $2,500 worth of stock from a lobbyist to report favorably on South Africa
, which was still under apartheid at the time. Kinsolving's State Department press credentials were revoked by the reporters' committee which issued them and a reprimand from the Standing Committee of Correspondents, which administers press credentials to the United States Congress
. Kinsolving appealed the action to the United States Senate
Rules Committee, and eventually won back his credentials.
In his early years in the Washington press corps, Kinsolving was well known for wearing his priest's collar
to press conference
s. Later on, he was famous for his bright red jacket.
Kinsolving has been an outspoken opponent of gay rights organizations — "the sodomy
lobby," as he refers to them — mainly because of his religious beliefs.
Though considered by most observers to be a political conservative
, Kinsolving began his career in the 1960s as a liberal
, and still holds many views considered to be left-wing; he is pro-choice
and against the death penalty. On his show, Uninhibited Radio Free Maryland, Kinsolving often debates "The Berkeley Democrat" — his longtime wife, Sylvia.
After a verbal altercation with White House Press Secretary
Tony Snow
on July 25, 2007, Kinsolving's publisher, Joseph Farah
of WorldNetDaily
, wrote a harshly-worded column characterizing Snow's comments as "...a rebuke, and a threat, and an attempt to control Les Kinsolving and [WorldNetDaily]'s right to ask questions at the White House." Farah announced that Kinsolving would no longer be attending White House press briefings as a result. On Aug. 5, 2007, WND reported that after a "one-on-one conference" with Snow, Kinsolving agreed to return to the briefings.
Kinsolving has also appeared as an actor, playing the same role in two films: Gettysburg and Gods and Generals
. In those films, he portrayed Confederate
Gen. William Barksdale
, Kinsolving's distant cousin.
A biography of Kinsolving, Gadfly, The Life and Times of Les Kinsolving-White House Watchdog, was written by his youngest daughter, Kathleen, and was released in May 2010.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
) is a political 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, currently heard on WCBM
WCBM
WCBM is a Talk formatted broadcast radio station in Baltimore, Maryland. The station is owned by WCBM Maryland, Inc., which also owns WVIE, 1370 AM...
in Baltimore, Maryland. He is better known, however, as a White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
correspondent
Correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is a journalist or commentator, or more general speaking, an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, location. A foreign correspondent is stationed in a foreign...
for WorldNetDaily
WorldNetDaily
WorldNetDaily is an American web site that publishes news and associated content from a U.S. conservative perspective. It was founded in May 1997 by Joseph Farah with the stated intent of "exposing wrongdoing, corruption and abuse of power" and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.-History:In...
. His pointed questioning of the President's
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
press secretaries
Press secretary
A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage....
has made him a Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
institution for more than three decades, and earned him a reputation as a gadfly within the corps. It's also sometimes made him the butt of jokes from many comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
s, including Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
on The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
.
Kinsolving is also a minister
Minister of religion
In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community...
in the Anglican Church. He was a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
in the Episcopal Church, breaking away in 1978. Throughout the early part of his career, Kinsolving wrote a syndicated
Print syndication
Print syndication distributes news articles, columns, comic strips and other features to newspapers, magazines and websites. They offer reprint rights and grant permissions to other parties for republishing content of which they own/represent copyrights....
newspaper column about religious issues.
As a reporter and columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
for the San Francisco Examiner in the 1970s, Kinsolving was the first to report on the Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple was a religious organization founded in 1955 by Jim Jones that, by the mid-1970s, included over a dozen locations in California including its headquarters in San Francisco...
cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
led by Jim Jones
Jim Jones
James Warren "Jim" Jones was the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple, which is best known for the November 18, 1978 mass suicide of 909 Temple members in Jonestown, Guyana along with the killings of five other people at a nearby airstrip.Jones was born in Indiana and started the Temple in...
, six years before the cult's members committed mass suicide
Mass suicide
- Examples :Mass suicide sometimes occurs in religious or cultic settings. Defeated groups may resort to mass suicide rather than being captured. Suicide pacts are a form of mass suicide unconnected to cults or war that are sometimes planned or carried out by small groups of frustrated people...
in the jungles of Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
; his reporting brought on vocal protesting by the group, and resulted in the newspaper canceling most of his multi-part series and replacing it with a more flattering portrayal of Jones. The episode left him angry with his treatment, and he left the Examiner, finally ending up in Washington, resuming a radio reporting career that began with a four-year stint at KCBS-FM
KCBS-FM
KCBS-FM is a radio station in Los Angeles, California broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area on 93.1 FM. KCBS-FM airs an adult hits music format branded as "Jack-FM"....
in Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
.
His reputation was damaged in 1977, when Washington Post reporter Walter Pincus reported that Kinsolving had accepted $2,500 worth of stock from a lobbyist to report favorably on South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, which was still under apartheid at the time. Kinsolving's State Department press credentials were revoked by the reporters' committee which issued them and a reprimand from the Standing Committee of Correspondents, which administers press credentials to the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. Kinsolving appealed the action to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Rules Committee, and eventually won back his credentials.
In his early years in the Washington press corps, Kinsolving was well known for wearing his priest's collar
Clerical collar
A clerical collar is an item of Christian clerical clothing. It is a detachable collar that buttons onto a clergy shirt or rabbat , being fastened by two metal studs, one attached at the front and one at the back to hold the collar to the shirt. The collar closes at the back of the neck, presenting...
to press conference
News conference
A news conference or press conference is a media event in which newsmakers invite journalists to hear them speak and, most often, ask questions. A joint press conference instead is held between two or more talking sides.-Practice:...
s. Later on, he was famous for his bright red jacket.
Kinsolving has been an outspoken opponent of gay rights organizations — "the sodomy
Sodomy
Sodomy is an anal or other copulation-like act, especially between male persons or between a man and animal, and one who practices sodomy is a "sodomite"...
lobby," as he refers to them — mainly because of his religious beliefs.
Though considered by most observers to be a political 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...
, Kinsolving began his career in the 1960s as a liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
, and still holds many views considered to be left-wing; he is pro-choice
Pro-choice
Support for the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-choice movement, a sociopolitical movement supporting the ethical view that a woman should have the legal right to elective abortion, meaning the right to terminate her pregnancy....
and against the death penalty. On his show, Uninhibited Radio Free Maryland, Kinsolving often debates "The Berkeley Democrat" — his longtime wife, Sylvia.
After a verbal altercation with White House Press Secretary
White House Press Secretary
The White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....
Tony Snow
Tony Snow
Robert Anthony "Tony" Snow was an American journalist, political commentator, television news anchor, syndicated columnist, radio host, musician, and the third White House Press Secretary under President George W. Bush. Snow also worked for President George H. W. Bush as chief speechwriter and...
on July 25, 2007, Kinsolving's publisher, Joseph Farah
Joseph Farah
-External links:* Official website* *...
of WorldNetDaily
WorldNetDaily
WorldNetDaily is an American web site that publishes news and associated content from a U.S. conservative perspective. It was founded in May 1997 by Joseph Farah with the stated intent of "exposing wrongdoing, corruption and abuse of power" and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.-History:In...
, wrote a harshly-worded column characterizing Snow's comments as "...a rebuke, and a threat, and an attempt to control Les Kinsolving and [WorldNetDaily]'s right to ask questions at the White House." Farah announced that Kinsolving would no longer be attending White House press briefings as a result. On Aug. 5, 2007, WND reported that after a "one-on-one conference" with Snow, Kinsolving agreed to return to the briefings.
Kinsolving has also appeared as an actor, playing the same role in two films: Gettysburg and Gods and Generals
Gods and Generals (film)
Gods and Generals is a 2003 American film based on the novel Gods and Generals by Jeffrey Shaara. It depicts events that take place prior to those shown in the 1993 film Gettysburg, which was based on The Killer Angels, a novel by Shaara's father, Michael...
. In those films, he portrayed Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
Gen. William Barksdale
William Barksdale
William Barksdale was a lawyer, newspaper editor, U.S. Congressman, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War...
, Kinsolving's distant cousin.
A biography of Kinsolving, Gadfly, The Life and Times of Les Kinsolving-White House Watchdog, was written by his youngest daughter, Kathleen, and was released in May 2010.