Kevin James (broadcaster)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kevin James (born 1963), an American radio host and conservative political commentator, hosts The Kevin James Show, which focuses on local and national politics. The program airs on KRLA AM 870 in Los Angeles between 9 p.m. and 1 a.m. on weekdays, a recent doubling of James' air time.[1] Previously, James was an assistant federal prosecutor and an entertainment lawyer. He achieved notoriety for a May 2008 appearance on the television program Hardball with Chris Matthews for his ignorance of the appeasement policies of former British prime minister Neville Chamberlain.
Contents |
[edit] Early life
James earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Oklahoma and attended the University of Houston Law Center.[2] He is a member of the California State Bar.[3]
[edit] Career
James worked for three years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, prosecuting federal crimes.[2] He also worked for more than 10 years in private practice, representing entertainment industry clients.[2]
After several years as a guest and substitute host for talk radio programs in Los Angeles, James worked as the morning drive host on KTOK AM 1000 in Oklahoma City in 2004.[2]
In 2005, James became the host of Red Eye Radio, an overnight (1 a.m. to 5 a.m.) call-in program on KABC (AM) 790 in Los Angeles [4].
Over Memorial Day Weekend 2007, James began hosting The Kevin James Show on KRLA AM 870 in Los Angeles.[5].
James also appears as a guest commentator on television news programs. He was a regular on Court TV’s now-cancelled Catherine Crier Live and has appeared numerous times on Hardball with Chris Matthews.[6].
[edit] May 2008 Hardball appearance
James achieved noteriety for a May 15, 2008 guest spot on the MSNBC television program Hardball with Chris Matthews, in which James first supported a comparison of Barack Obama to former British prime minister Neville Chamberlain's "appeasement" of Hitler in Munich in 1938.[7]
Earlier that day, President George W. Bush, addressing the Israeli Knesset, had said that while "some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals," he believed that "we have an obligation to call this what it is -- the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history."[8] While James said he did not know if Bush was in fact making a veiled reference to Obama, he argued in favor of the comparison itself. The other guest, Air America Radio president Mark J. Green, denounced Bush's comparison.
After James agreed with the analogy to Chamberlain, host Chris Matthews turned to James and, saying he was conducting a "history check," asked "what did Chamberlain do wrong?" When James failed to give an answer more specific than that "he was an appeaser," Matthews repeated the question and, over the course of the next five minutes, continued to ask James variations of the question, though the only answers James gave were variations on the original answer, that "he was an appeaser." Eventually James admitted that he did not know what he was talking about.
James appeared on the January 12, 2009 episode of The Daily Show as a direct result of his Hardball appearance.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b c d "Kevin James Biography". KRLA. 2008. http://krla.townhall.com/pages/KEVINJAMES. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
- ^ California Bar Membership
- ^ "Kevin James Named New Host of Talkradio 790 KABC's Red Eye Radio", KABC March 3, 2005 press release
- ^ "KRLA Website"
- ^ [2]In this MSNBC video, host Chris Matthews ends the segment by stating that James won the debate regarding the negative political impact of Barack Obama's affiliation with Rev. Jeremiah Wright
- ^ Video Clip Appearance from MSNBC
- ^ [3]White House Transcript, May 15, 2008
- ^ Huffington Post article: ""Daily Show's" Jason Jones Goes To Pundit School (VIDEO)".
[edit] External links
- Kevin James on KRLA
