In October 2001, he became one of the first[4] high-profile employees to leave KRON after it was announced that the station would be losing its affiliation with the NBC television network.
Wilson hosted a talk radio show on the number-one rated 50,000-watt KGO (AM) weekdays 2–4 p.m. up until his death in 2007.
In his role as an inflammatory talk radio show host, Wilson raised controversy with comments he made on KGO radio on October 10, 2006, criticizing San Francisco Supervisor Bevan Dufty, who is gay, for his nonromantic co-parenting relationship with a lesbian friend, sparking calls for Wilson's resignation from four members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
[8][9][10] Pete Wilson died at age 62 after suffering a "massive heart attack during the operation, was put on life support, and last night (2007/07/20) was taken off"[11] [12][13] while having hip replacement surgery at Stanford University Medical Center.
It was reported later that Wilson had severe anxiety about the surgery and was hospitalized briefly at Stanford University Medical Center to recover from it.