Halton was born in Beaconsfield, England in 1940. His father Matthew Halton, was a war correspondent for the CBC Radio during World War II and died when David was 16 years old on December 3, 1956. The senior Halton had a big influence in David's career choice. His sister Kathleen Tynan was the second wife and biographer of the English theatre critic Ken Tynan.
David Halton joined CBC in 1965, and has spent time as a foreign affairs correspondent in:
Before moving to Washington, Halton was the chief political correspondent in Ottawa for the CBC. He retired in June 2005, although he still acts as a special contributor on CBC, and is currently working on a book.
Halton is fluent in French and Russian. He married his Russian wife, Zoya, while on assignment in Moscow.
His son Daniel used to work as a reporter for the CBC.