Tony Seton has written, produced, directed, and reported in live and tape broadcasts
for radio and television, both commercial and public, network and
local, winning a number of national awards. He got started in professional
communications at age 19, on April Fool's Day 1970, working as a
$73-a-week copy-boy on the overnight assignment desk at ABC Network
Television News in New York. During the Seventies, he rose through the
ranks to become a senior producer at ABC, covering five space shots,
six elections, Watergate, Barbara Walters' news
interviews, and a
decade of breaking news stories across North America and Europe.
In 1980, he moved to the West Coast where he
began a second career as a consultant on marketing, advertising,
public relations, and corporate communications ventures that ranged
from long distance telephone service to riverboat gambling, medical
equipment leasing to taquerias, matchmaking to computers. He
also kept his hand in broadcasting. As Director of Marketing and
Research for KXTC, a Monterey lite rock radio station, he
doubled revenues, produced a series of highly-praised environmental
minutes, and conducted interviews with local movers and shakers.
In 1995, Tony partnered with a long-time
friend to form Wins of Change, a political consulting firm
specializing in media and message. In the first three cycles, they
produced the television messages for a number of federal, state, and
local campaigns. They also produced radio spots for three U.S. Senate
and two House races in five states. Clients included Rep. Nancy Pelosi
(D-San Francisco) and U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Tom Campbell, a
Republican who represented Silicon Valley.
Offered the opportunity to get back to
broadcasting, Tony debuted a new radio program, Tony Seton's InFORMATION,
on KBPA 1220AM in January 1998. His show reached tens of thousands of
upscale Bay Area listeners who were bored with NPR and instead tuned
into his program for scintillating conversation on relevant topics,
news2use, and thoughtful humor.
A prolific writer, Tony has published two
consumer books, Right Car, Right Price and
The Under $800
Computer Buyer's Guide, a passel of poems, a volume of book
reviews, and a sheaf of essays. His writing has appeared in
publications across the country.
Tony taught Documentary Film Writing at
Monterey Peninsula College and occasionally lectured on "The Truth
about Television News." He has also instructed in Creative Writing at
the women's Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California. In
addition, Tony has provided
media training for individuals, companies and organizations.
After moving to Redding, Tony appeared
briefly on radio station KQMS, where his
SetonnoteS commentary
and Newsmaker interviews won their time slots by 50%. While at
the radio station, Tony launched a series of reports on learning to
fly, From the Ground Up, which have been reproduced for
national syndication.
In the fall of 2001, Tony wrote, produced,
directed and reported Mother Nurture, a half-hour public
television program on child-rearing; it received two national awards.
In late 2002, he wrote, produced, directed and reported a second
public television half-hour program called
Divorce -- Collaborative
Style. It was also recognized with a national award.
In September of 2003, he published a
television news textbook entitled
Don't Mess with the Press / How
to Write, Produce and Report Quality Television News. A month
later, Tony moved back to Mill Valley (California) and the following
year established the American Patriots Coalition. Under this banner,
he produced three GOTV (get out the vote) television spots designed to
increase voter participation in the 2004 election swing states.
In the Spring of 2005, Tony moved back to
Monterey to establish a new radio station as the flagship for a Radio
Free America syndication network. But when his partners preferred to
air syndicated broadcasts that promoted a particular agenda and when
they eschewed plans to develop quality news broadcasts, it was time
for a parting of the ways. Tony established the
Quality News Network.
QNN began airing the finest hourly
newscasts in the country, Monday through Friday, from 6:00am through
6:05pm (Pacific) in January of 2006. The QNN newscasts streamed live on the Internet and
were uplinked to a tier-one satellite for distribution to radio stations
around the country.
In August of 2006, Tony published a how-to
interviewing guide called
The Quality Interview /
Getting It Right on Both Sides of the Mic. The book was
based in part on the more than 250 interviews he did with political
challengers in the 2006 races, candidates from all parties and from all fifty states, for
the House, Senate and governorships.
In October 2006, Tony launched
America Back on Track, a
daily noon hour broadcast featuring news, interviews, and
commentary. The program features conversations with many local
people speaking about global issues, as well as prominent national
and international figures talking about how to restore the values
and sense of purpose on which this country was founded. A major Pacific
storm and financial difficulties forced QNN off the air on
January 4th 2008. (Interviews &
Recordings)
Tony started teaching at the Monterey Institute of International
Studies in the fall of 2007 with a course in
"Media Management in Public Policy."
Branching out in
2009, Tony
produced a half-dozen websites from design to execution. Also,
he edited a book for a Vietnam War POW, consulted to an agricultural labor contractor,
designed a
program to teach
non-English speaking workers the lexicon of their workplace, and
was media advisor in two statewide political races. In April 2010, Tony
published his latest book,
Truth Be Told, a
novel based on a true story of sexual harassment and cover-up at
a law school.
In June 2001, Tony
launched The Living
Proof Project. He writes
and produces books (and videos and websites) for individuals.
The first book -- "Vision for a Healthy California" by
Assemblyman Bill Monning -- came out in September. A second by
spiritualist Dan Shafer came out in October, together with a
video trailer.
In March, Tony
published From
Terror to Triumph / The Herma Smith Curtis Story, and
in April published his latest novel,
Silver Lining, a
compelling, heart-warming story of romance, politics, media, and
guns, torn from today's news headlines.
Several more books are in process.
When he’s not working, Tony is out flying, shooting photographs or talking long
walks along the Pacific Ocean.
