Malone turns to airwaves to keep community informed

BY JOHN BRICE
FOR THE LAFAYETTE SUN 

LANETT — More than a year after his time representing District 1 on the Lanett City Council came to an end, Tony Malone has found another way to stay involved in the community: behind the microphone.

Malone hosts “The Tony Malone Show,” a live morning program focused on local news, government, politics and community issues. 

“I have been doing it for about a year now. I started it when I did not win the mayorship,” Malone said. “I wanted to try to bring something to the community.”

The program airs Monday through Thursday from 7 to 8 a.m. ET and features interviews with political candidates, public officials and other community leaders.

“We have special guests on, just like we had this morning, [democratic] gubernatorial candidate Doug Jones,” Malone said. “We try to inform the community on what is happening.”

Listeners can find the program through the Tony Malone Morning Show Facebook page and online through Chambers County Radio.

Malone said the idea grew from his longtime interest in keeping residents informed about what is happening in their communities.

“I have always been active in the community,” he said. “I was sitting around one day trying to find a way to get things to the community when it comes to news and what is happening.”

He said he saw a need for additional coverage of local government and issues affecting Lanett, LaFayette, Valley and nearby LaGrange, Georgia.

“That is why I am doing it,” Malone said. “It is something that I have been doing since before I got on the council. I have been doing this way before I became a political person.”

Malone also has previous newspaper experience. Several years ago, he served as editor of The People’s Voice, a weekly newspaper based in Roanoke that covered several counties, including Chambers County.

Malone said local reporting fills a different role than the coverage residents receive from national news organizations.

“National media is great. You have got all of your big networks, ABC and all of those people are good. They are going to tell you about the national news that is going on,” he said. “But you want to know what is going to affect you here locally.”

He pointed to newspapers such as The LaFayette Sun and other locally focused outlets as important sources of information about government and community issues.

“[They] all cover the things that affect people here locally,” Malone said. “I think that having a local venue is very important for getting the word out to the people.”

Interviews with local officials, candidates and community leaders have become a central part of Malone’s morning program.

Thursday marked Jones’ second appearance on the show, according to Malone. Other guests have included Chambers County Commission candidate Sara Crutchfield, Point University representative Aaron Lewis, a West Point community development official, congressional candidate Lee McInnis and other political and community figures.

“Politically and non-politically,” Malone said of the show’s guests. “We are hoping to get even more.”