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Robert Enyart (January 10, 1959 – September 12, 2021) was an American conservative talk radio host and pastor of Denver Bible Church in Denver, Colorado. He was an anti-abortion advocate and political commentator. Enyart opposed vaccinations and mask mandates for COVID-19. He died from COVID-19.

Early life and education

Enyart was born and raised in Paterson, New Jersey. He attended a Catholic grammar school for eight years before attending a public high school. Enyart studied at Arizona State University at Tempe, where he specialized in computer science.

Career

Before graduating from college, Enyart began working in the technology industry, including positions at McDonnell Douglas and US West in Denver. He designed computer software for military helicopters and served as a computer analyst for Microsoft.

Concerned about legalized abortion, Enyart began working for Operation Rescue in 1989, where protests at women's clinics led to Enyart spending time in jail.

In 1991, Enyart began broadcasting about conservative issues at KQXI. With his audience growing, he began broadcasting on Christian television station KWHD-TV, owned by LeSea Broadcasting of South Bend, Indiana.

In 2000, Enyart became pastor at Denver Bible Church.

Enyart hosted Bob Enyart Live, a daily show on Denver-based Christian radio station KLTT and was a host for Cornerstone Television.

In 1991, Enyart created a radio show to support creationism and attack evolution. Enyart changed the name of the show in 2006 to Real Science Friday as a challenge to National Public Radio's show Science Friday. On December 28, 2012, Enyart settled a trademark infringement and cybersquatting lawsuit brought against him by NPR and renamed his show Real Science Radio.

Activism

Abortion

Enyart served as a spokesperson for the anti-abortion group American Right to Life. He picketed the homes of doctors who performed abortions, causing one Colorado town to ban such protests in residential neighborhoods. Enyart criticized presidential candidates who did not share his view on abortion and advocated for the death penalty for women who had abortions.

AIDS

Enyart angered families of AIDS victims when he read a man's obituary on his television show, Bob Enyart Live, calling the deceased a sodomite. A regular feature of the show involved reading obituaries of AIDS sufferers while playing "Another One Bites the Dust" by Queen, whose lead singer, Freddie Mercury, died in 1991 from complications from AIDS.

Corporal punishment

Enyart was a proponent of corporal punishment of children. He served a 60-day jail sentence in the Jefferson County Correctional Facility after being convicted of child abuse for hitting a 7-year-old child with a belt so violently that he raised welts and broke the skin of the child.

In 1994, Enyart agreed to stop making late-night telephone calls to residents of Kenosha, Wisconsin who were upset with the content of his program on a Kenosha television station. The calls prompted Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) to call for a Federal Communications Commission investigation to determine if the talk show host had broken laws.

Enyart was sentenced to 11 days in jail in June 2009 after he refused to pay a fine upon his conviction of criminal trespassing at the Focus on the Family headquarters.

O. J. Simpson

In 1999, Enyart bought about $16,000 worth of O. J. Simpson memorabilia, which he burned on the steps of the Los Angeles courthouse where Simpson was acquitted, to protest the verdict in the Simpson murder case.

COVID-19

Following a lawsuit brought by Enyart, a U.S. District Court judge ruled in October 2020 that the state could not impose mask-wearing mandates or limits on the size of gatherings at Denver Bible Church.

Enyart supported the debunked theory that COVID-19 vaccinations had been tested on aborted fetuses. He remained unvaccinated until his death.

Personal life

Enyart married Krista Johnson in 1982. The couple had two children, Josiah and Nathanial, before divorcing in 1989 as a result of his extra-marital affairs.

In 1994, Enyart married Cheryl Mayns, who became his third wife after he had a brief second marriage. He served a 60-day jail sentence after being convicted of child abuse for hitting her 7-year-old child with a belt so violently that he raised welts and broke the skin of the child.

In August 2021, Enyart announced that he had contracted COVID-19. He died of COVID-19 in September 2021 and was 62 years old.

References

1. "Conservative radio host who spurned vaccines, mocked AIDS patients dies of covid-19". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
2. ^ Roberts, Michael (December 16, 1999). "Thank God for Bob!". Westword. Voice Media Group, LLC. Retrieved September 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
3. Hurley, Harry (September 15, 2021). "New Jersey Should Take Note of Latest Radio Host to Die from COVID-19". WPG Talk Radio 95.5 FM. Retrieved September 19, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
4. "Lesson of Anti-Vaxxer Radio Host Bob Enyart's Cause of Death". US Day News. September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
5. "Bob Enyart". My Heritage. Retrieved September 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
6. ^ Tabachnik, Sam (September 14, 2021). "Bob Enyart, Conservative Firebrand and Pastor, Dies of COVID-19". The Denver Post. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
7. "Bob Enyart Live | KLTT - 670AM". KLTT Powerful Christian Talk. Retrieved September 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
8. ^ "Arvada Pastor and Radio Host's "Real Science Friday" Sued by NPR Show". The Denver Post. December 1, 2012. Retrieved September 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
9. Starr, Jerold (2001). Air Wars: The Fight to Reclaim Public Broadcasting. Temple University Press. p. 142. ISBN 978-1-56639-913-5. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
10. "Trademark Suit Against Creationists Settled". National Center for Science Education. Retrieved September 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
11. Steffan, Melissa (February 5, 2013). "Creationist Pastor Loses to NPR over 'Science Friday' Radio Show". Christianity Today.
12. ^ Bella, Timothy (September 14, 2021). "Conservative Radio Host Who Spurned Vaccines, Mocked AIDS Patients Dies of Covid-19". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
13. McKibben, Ginny (June 28, 2000). "County Limits Demonstrations Abortion Protests at Doctor's Home Lead to Ordinance". The Denver Post. p. A-01. Retrieved September 20, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
14. Beaubien, Jason (June 15, 2007). "Romney's Abortion Stance: Flip-Flop or Full Circle?". All Things Considered. NPR. Archived from the original on December 23, 2008. Retrieved September 21, 2008.
15. Pengelly, Martin (September 14, 2021). "Colorado Radio Host Who Urged Boycott of Vaccines Dies of Covid-19". The Guardian. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
16. "Host Must Stop Reading Gays' Obituaries on TV Friends of AIDS Victim Angered". The Gazette. January 14, 1995. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2008.
17. ^ Roberts, Michael. "COVID Hits Pastor/Podcaster Who Sued Over Masks in Church". Westword. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
18. Briggs, Bill (May 17, 1995). "The World of Bob Enyart Outspoken TV Broadcaster Steers a Hard Right". Denver Post. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2008.
19. Gerhardt, Gary (April 10, 1999). "TV Host Begins Jail Sentence Bob Enyart Given 60 Days for Hitting Boy With Belt". Rocky Mountain News. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2021 – via High Beam Research.
20. ^ Lindsay, Sue (June 17, 1999). "Judge Affirms Enyart's Right to Discuss Abuse Conviction on TV". Rocky Mountain News. Cengage Learning Network. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved September 20, 2021 – via High Beam Research. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; October 21, 2012 suggested (help)
21. Lisheron, Mark (December 23, 1994). "`Right-Wing' TV Host Will Stop Late-Night Calls to Foes in Kenosha". JS Online. Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2021 – via Newsbank.
22. Ensslin, John (June 10, 2009). "Activists Jailed Over Trespassing at Focus". The Gazette. Freedom Communications. Archived from the original on June 13, 2009. Retrieved September 21, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.
23. Mehta, Seema (February 18, 1999). "Group Burns Simpson Memorabilia Outside Court". Los Angeles Times. The California Times Publishing Company. pp. B4. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
24. "Buyer Smashes and Burns O. J. Simpson Memorabilia". Chicago Tribune. The Tribune Publishing Company. February 18, 1999. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
25. Bradbury, Shelly (October 21, 2020). "Colorado's COVID-19 Restrictions on Churches Violate Constitution, Federal Judge Rules". The Denver Post. MediaNews Group. Retrieved September 14, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
26. Peake, Amber (September 15, 2021). "Who Was Bob Enyart's Wife, Cheryl? Late Pastor's Family Life Explored". The Focus. Retrieved September 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
27. Snouwaert, Jessica (September 15, 2021). "Controversial Denver Pastor Bob Enyart Dies at Age 62 From COVID-19". The Denver Gazette. Retrieved September 21, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
28. Gerhardt, Gary (April 10, 1999). "TV Host Begins Jail Sentence Bob Enyart Given 60 Days for Hitting Boy With Belt". Rocky Mountain News. Cengage Learning Network. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2008.
29. Bella, Timothy (September 14, 2021). "Conservative radio host who spurned vaccines, mocked AIDS patients dies of covid-19". The Washington Post.

External links

• Denver Bible Church
• Bob Enyart Live
• Bob Enyart at IMDb

• 1959 births
• 2021 deaths
• American anti-abortion activists
• American anti-vaccination activists
• American Christian religious leaders
• American conservative talk radio hosts
• Ex-gay movement
• People from the Denver metropolitan area
• Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Colorado
• American Christian creationists
• American television talk show hosts