Ben Fong-Torres

Benjamin Fong-Torres, born on January 7, 1945, is a prominent American rock journalist, celebrated for his significant contributions to Rolling Stone magazine until 1981 and later to the San Francisco Chronicle from around 1982. Raised in Oakland's Chinatown, where his family ran a restaurant, Fong-Torres pursued a degree in Radio-TV-Film at San Francisco State College, serving as both a reporter and editor for the campus newspaper.

His writing career took off in 1968 with Rolling Stone, where he began as a contributor in the magazine's eighth issue. At the time, he balanced a full-time role at Pacific Telephone’s employee magazine with volunteering at East West, a bilingual newspaper in Chinatown. By May 1969, he had risen to the position of news editor at Rolling Stone. Fong-Torres conducted interviews with legendary artists including Bob Dylan, Elton John, and Marvin Gaye, earning the Deems Taylor Award for his interview with Ray Charles in 1974.

In addition to his writing, he was a weekend DJ on KSAN from 1970 to 1980 and hosted the live arts program Fog City Radio on KQED-FM. Fong-Torres has co-anchored KTVU-TV’s Chinese New Year parade coverage since 1997, winning four Emmys. His versatile career includes appearances on television shows like Wheel of Fortune, where he won around $99,000, and contributions to various prestigious magazines, including Esquire and GQ. He also authored key biographies for People magazine’s tributes to icons like Jerry Garcia and Frank Sinatra.