Pete Wilson, the veteran ABC7 news anchor and KGO talk radio host, died Friday, July 20 at Stanford Hospital after suffering a massive heart attack during hip replacement surgery. He was 62.
"Pete was one of the most valued and respected news professionals in the Bay Area and the country," said Valari Staab, ABC7 president and general manager in a statement on the station's Web site.
Mr. Wilson had been the co-anchor of the top-rated ABC7 News at 6 p.m. for the past five and a half years. He rejoined the station in January 2002 after a 12-year stint anchoring the news at KRON-TV in San Francisco. He first came to ABC7 News in 1983 from KTXL-TV in Sacramento.
Mr. Wilson could be outspoken, particularly on his afternoon talk radio show on KGO 810 AM. And one incident last fall drew anger from political leaders and others in the city's LGBT community after he criticized Supervisor Bevan Dufty's decision to have a child with lesbian Rebecca Goldfader. The co-parents, who are not in a romantic relationship, welcomed daughter Sidney Maely Goldfader-Dufty into the world last October 2. On October 10, Mr. Wilson characterized the family as loveless and "a bad situation," saying it was no different than a couple of guys sitting around watching a football game and deciding to have a kid. Mr. Wilson also added that Sidney was just a "social experiment."
The fallout was swift, as members of the Board of Supervisors and many in the LGBT community rallied around Dufty and his family. At a news conference on the steps of City Hall the day after the broadcast, some supervisors demanded Mr. Wilson be fired, and community leaders called for an apology. Mr. Wilson did apologize for his "inappropriate comments," Kevin Keeshan, vice president of news at ABC7, said last fall.
This week, Dufty declined to comment on Mr. Wilson's death, other than to say he was "stunned."
Supervisor Tom Ammiano told the Bay Area Reporter that he was sorry about how Mr. Wilson died and felt for his family. "But I wouldn't recant my assessment of his remarks over the years," he added.
Ken Miguel, president of the Northern California chapter of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association and one of Mr. Wilson's producers at ABC7, expressed sadness at his passing and praised Mr. Wilson's stance on a number of gay issues.
"He was very supportive of same-sex marriage and very supportive of same-sex adoption," Miguel told the B.A.R. Monday. "I think he had a slip-up about Dufty. This is a man who had the most distinct way of speaking and talking to people."
Miguel said he worked with Mr. Wilson on stories about the military's anti-gay "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, same-sex marriage, and pieces on various gay political issues.
"Never once did I think he had any adverse feelings toward the community," Miguel said. "He was so much better than that one incident."
Thom Lynch, executive director of the LGBT Community Center, recalled that he was "shocked" when he first heard Mr. Wilson's comments.
"Particularly puzzling was that Mr. Wilson had been generally supportive of LGBT issues, including marriage equality rights. I sent an e-mail to him and to my surprise his program responded the next day. Pete invited me to be on his radio program for a full hour to discuss why so many of us were offended by his comments," Lynch wrote in an e-mail.
"We had a lively conversation and made some progress in finding some areas of agreement. He was absolutely wrong in what he said. He knew he had said it badly and felt he was speaking more broadly about what he perceived was happening to the American 'family.' He lumped in Hollywood starlets and their horrible parenting skills with a general sense of thoughtless planning on rearing children. Of course, no two people plan as completely as LGBT people need to when it comes to children."
From that experience, Lynch said he believed Mr. Wilson "was a man of a different generation, who was only still discovering what supporting gay issues could mean."
"He struggled with some of it. But I will say that despite our strongly different points of view, he treated me with tremendous respect and gave me an opportunity to use his own program to explain why he was wrong.
"I wish we had more opportunities to debate, I think he was really trying to understand and change," Lynch added.
Miguel said that Mr. Wilson "was a great man."
"He had the gift of gab and will be missed tremendously," he added.
Mr. Wilson is survived by his wife, Sandra, and son Brendan. At press time, memorial plans had not been announced, though a public event is planned. ABC7 noted on its Web site that in lieu of flowers, the family asks that people make a donation to the charity of their choice.