Kirby Allen Wilbur (born November 11, 1953) is an American talk radio journalist in Seattle, Washington and a conservative political activist. He served as the chair of the Washington State Republican Party.
Early life and career
Wilbur was born in Washington, D.C., on November 11, 1953[1] and raised in Seattle, graduating from Queen Anne High School and the University of Washington.[citation needed] A real estate appraiser by profession, Wilbur was a frequent caller to Seattle talk radio stations when, in 1993, a producer at KVI-AM asked him to audition for an on-air position. He was first employed by the station as a substitute host, then began weekday evening broadcasts in 1993.[2]
Wilbur, who has served as a delegate to three Republican National Conventions, met his wife, Trina, while working on Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign. They have two sons, Nathan and Adam.[3]
In 1999 Wilbur co-authored, with Floyd Brown, Say the Right Thing: Talk Radio's Favorite Conservative Quotes, Notes and Gloats, which was published by Merrill Press.[6]
Radio
Wilbur began hosting the 5:00am to 9:00am (PT) time slot at KVI-AM in 1995 as The Kirby Wilbur Show. In 2006, the name of the program was changed to Kirby & Co. and began to feature occasional, but increasingly irregular, contributions by KVI news director Carleen Johnson and producer David Carson.[citation needed]
On November 12, 2009, Wilbur broadcast the last edition of his show. The KVI general manager indicated that the reason was declining ratings; no misconduct was cited.[7][8]
Wilbur returned to KVI on January 4, 2016 in the 9 a.m. to noon slot, including co-hosting the first hour with morning drive host John Carlson. This has since been increased to the first two hours (8 a.m. - 10 with Carlson, 10 a.m. - noon solo).[9]
Wilbur has been a frequent staple on the Talkers Magazine "Heavy Hundred" list, an annual index of what the magazine bills as "the most important radio talk show hosts in America". In 2009, he appeared in position 72.[10]
The Sean Hannity Show
Since 2003 Wilbur has served as fill-in host on 11 episodes of the Sean Hannity Show.
Chair of the Washington State Republican Party
Wilbur unseated Luke Esser by a vote of 69 to 36 as Chair of the Washington State Republican Party in January 2011.[11]
^"About". Citizens United. Archived from the original on 2010-08-12. Retrieved 2010-08-13.
^Wilbur, Kirby; Brown, Floyd (1999). Say the Right Thing: Talk Radio's Favorite Conservative Quotes, Notes and Gloats (9780936783222): Floyd Brown, Kirby Wilbur: Books. Merril Press. ISBN0936783222.
^Tu, Janet I. (2009-11-14). Kirby Wilbur, longtime radio host, loses show on KVI-AM: Longtime local conservative talk-radio host Kirby Wilbur aired his final show on AM 570 KVI Thursday, the radio station announced. The Seattle Times, 14 November 2009. Retrieved on 2009-11-18 from http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010272002_kirby14m.html.
^According to a Twitter post, it was because management decided not to renew his contract.[clarification needed]
