Seattle Channel was the recipient of six NATOA Awards, including for Overall Excellence. Seattle Channel was recognized as one of the best municipal television stations in the nation on Thursday when it received the prestigious Overall Excellence award for government programming at the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA) annual conference in New Orleans. It was the team’s 11th Overall Excellence award in the past 16 years. This year, the channel earned the distinction among peers in Washington, D.C., Denver, Austin, and Columbus, Ohio.
“The Seattle Channel’s recognition celebrates the importance of connecting community stories and the public purpose of sharing our City’s decisions and work.” says CTO Rob Lloyd. “For 11 times in 16 years, NATOA has affirmed what Seattle knows: that this team reflects Seattle back to itself with creativity, clarity, and care. Their work informs, it inspires, and it reminds us that the essence of a city is its people and places. We are so very proud of our Seattle Channel team and their commitment to excellence. They tell the Seattle story well and invite everyone to help shape it.”
In total, the city-operated television station won six Government Programming Awards, including four top Awards of Excellence for storytelling, editing, and a promotional video. Competing with the best municipal television stations in the nation, the Seattle Channel also received an Award of Distinction for a feature on the Seattle Central Library and an Award of Honor for a look back at the history of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
NATOA has been celebrating the achievements of local government programmers across the nation for 40 years. The national association represents local governments’ needs and interests in communications, broadband, and technology. Its annual Government Programming Awards (GPAs) honor excellence in broadcast, cable, multimedia, and electronic programming produced by local government agencies. A complete list of the award winners is available on NATOA’s website.
“Seattle Channel is excited and honored to be recognized by our municipal peers.” says Shannon Gee, the station’s general manager. “NATOA and the nation’s government channels provide unique and valuable insight, information, and support to our communities and residents, and we are very proud to be a part of such an important and supportive network. Congratulations to the Seattle Channel team for the prestigious Overall Excellence award for our work.”
This year, NATOA recognized the work of government agencies across the nation in 71 categories. These include familiar categories such as community events, documentaries, public affairs, interview or talk shows, performing arts, sports, and election coverage, ethnic experience and diversity, equity, and inclusion, and more.
Seattle Channel entered six categories and received awards in each. The 2025 NATOA honors include:
Awards of Excellence:
Category 59 – Event/Program Promotion (Operating Budget Over $350,000): “Get to Know the Seattle Channel”
Category 64 – Editing: “Community Stories: Grindline Skateparks” by videographer Chris Barnes
Category 66 – Storytelling: Seattle Channel
Category 71 – Overall Excellence (Operating Budget over $1,000,000): Seattle Channel
Awards of Distinction:
Category 15 – Library: “Celebrating 20 Years: The Story Behind Seattle’s Iconic Central Library” by Randy Eng
Award of Honor:
Category 40 – Transportation: “75 Years of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport” by Randy Eng
