Background
Toner was born in Le Mars, Iowa, from Irish American parents.
Toner was born in Le Mars, Iowa, from Irish American parents.
Toner graduated from both the University of Iowa (Bachelors in Journalism and Mass Communication, 1966) and the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in 1967.
In 1980, Toner nearly fell out of a helicopter while taking pictures of the Mount Saint Helens eruption. Four years later he encouraged a helicopter pilot to dip the aircraft closer to red-hot lava – just so that he would be able to get a better photograph of the molten flood. Toner spent three weeks doing research in Peru for an ongoing five-part series titled "Past in Peril," highlighting the evils of smuggling ancient artifacts from their native sites.
The Amazon jungles he trekked through were often in cocaine-producing regions.
Toner was one of the judges of the 2014 Writing Contest, held on April 27, 2015 at the National Press Club in Washington, District of Columbia).