Sunday, 8/23/2026, 8:30am - Like It Is

Claire Mack is the former mayor of San Mateo, California. Mrs. Mack is one of the first Black broadcasters to host major-market public affairs shows-starting more than 50 years ago at Bay Area stations KGO and KCSM. Mack helped change the face of American television. She paved the way for careers like Oprah Winfrey’s and brought the diversity of American life into Bay Area households. As a San Mateo city councilwoman and its first African-American mayor, she worked to bring fairness and good urban planning to all city residents. Mack was born in San Mateo in 1936.Her family moved to San Mateo in 1913 for the construction opportunities on the growing Peninsula. Mack shares memories of memorable interview sessions notably one with the late civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson. In 2026, Claire Mack was selected by The Bay Area Radio Hall Of Fames Board to be inducted into the SF Bay Area Hall Of Fame.