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These listings cover television programs up to Friday, August
22nd.
Greetings, TV viewers!
The Media Hour discussion topic for Wednesday, September 10th will be the TV programs
listed below about the 9-11 World Trade Center bombing. Several
of these shows will be aired prior to the Media Hour, so watch them. Also watch the ones
after that time. All are worth your time.
Two years have passed since the attacks on September 11th. What are your memories, what do you feel are the effects -- if any -- on your life caused by what happened then?
For the Media Hour, watch the show(s)-of-the-week, jot down some ideas, then talk about them with me and other citizens (including other City Workers, if they're available) at the Greek Theater, over in City Hall. You'll find that the Theater makes discussions pretty easy, since City Workers are able to direct people's movement and behavior, when we need to, and it keeps everyone's chat bubbles from overlapping too much. We meet for MediaHour on Wednesdays from 6:30pm and 7:30pm Whyville Time (that's the same as Eastern Daylight Time).
Everyone is welcome to write to me about what you and your parents think:
Y-mail me, the MediaWiz of Whyville!
And now... the Media Menu!
Friday,
September 5
"Dangerous
Cargo" (History Channel, 7-8pm E/P) This is a technology
documentary about an industry that becomes more and more important
every day, even though its existence is a worry -- but a necessity. An
average of 800,000 shipments of hazardous materials hit our highways
and railways daily. From wooden crates filled with explosives to
hazmat containers of nuclear waste, the program describes hazardous
material shipments -- tracked by satellites and carried on a hush-hush
"ghost fleet" -- trucks carrying classified government materials; and
shows a Con-Air flight moving another kind of nasty stuff -- dangerous
felons. Rated TV G.
"NOW
With Bill Moyers" (PBS, 8-9pm E/P) The main report in
this newsmagazine describes how women have experienced the
globalization of business, particularly in the developing world. Filmed
mostly in Thailand and Senegal, it shows how some of them have been
beneficiaries of this globalization; but many more are losing out due
to international trade agreements to the unfettered power of
multinational corporations.
Saturday,
September 6
"If
We Had No Moon" (Discovery Channel, 7-8pm E/P) This science
documentary asks, and answers, an interesting question. Without the
moon, days would last four hours, winds would blow with hurricane
force, and Earth would be shrouded in a dense, toxic atmosphere. What
luck that 50 million years ago, Earth sustained a major collision that
created its moon. There's an incredibly cool book called What
If the Moon Didn't Exist?: Voyages to Earths That Might Have Been
by Neil F. Comins
that
answers this and a bunch of other wild astronomy questions that will
get you wondering how it all works.
"Snake
Wranglers: Serpents of the Sea" (National Geographic Channel, 8:30-9pm
E/P) To
film this documentary, venom researcher Dr. Bryan Fry plunges into the
waters off the coast of Australia with his wife and research assistant,
Alexia, to capture and milk highly venomous sea snakes for the creation
of new antivenom.
Sunday,
September 7
"60
Minutes" (CBS, 7-8-pm E/P) In one of the
reports in this newsmagazine, entitled, "North Of the Border, a former
high-ranking Canadian intelligence official tells Steve Kroft that
there are at least 50 terrorist groups, Al Qaeda among them, operating
in Canada who could easily slip into the U.S. The other reports are
about a tragically wrong heart-lung transplant and about internet
wagering on professional football.
"DC 9/11: Time Of Crisis" (Showtime Network 8-10pm E/P) This is an original
movie made for television -- which commemorates the second anniversary
of the September 11 attacks. It focuses on the decisions and tasks
faced by President Bush and his staff on September 11, 2001 and the
days following the attacks. Based on in-depth
interviews and extensive research, the docudrama will interweave actual
footage of these events. Timothy Bottoms plays President George W.
Bush, with John Cunningham as Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld,
David Fonteno as Secretary of State Colin Powell, Penny Johnson Jerald
as National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, Mary Gordon Murray as
First Lady Laura Bush and George Takei as U.S. Transportation Secretary
Norman Mineta.
"And
Starring Pancho Villa As Himself" (HBO, 9:30-11:30pm E/P) This is a historical
movie made for television about the early days of "embedding" reporters
with cameras with troops in combat. In this movie it's about an
American crew filming Pancho Villa in battle, in 1914 in Mexico. Rebel
leader Pancho Villa allowed a Hollywood crew to film him and his army
as they fought the nationalist Huerta forces. Early movie giants D.W.
Griffith (Colm Feore) and Harry Aiken (Jim Broadbent), send a junior
executive, Frank Thayer (Eion Bailey) to Mexico to persuade the
cash-strapped, publicity-hungry Villa, (Antonio Banderas) to let them
film his revolution. Stepping into the literal crossfire, Thayer's crew
risked their lives, mingling of fiction and reality -- many battle
scenes were 'staged' for the camera. Directed by Bruce Beresford and
written by Larry Gelbart (the creator of the M.A.S.H. TV series). Also
airs September 12 at 8pm and Thursday, September 18 at 9pm.
Monday,
September 8
"The
Center Of The World" (PBS, 9pm-midnight E/P) This documentary, the final episode in a series about New York, is a portrait of the
World Trade Center -- culminating in the events of September 11, 2001.
It traces the origins and development of the twin towers -- called the
"moonshot" of structural engineering and skyscraper construction -- the
controversies and challenges that surrounded their rise into the sky,
and the complex relationship of the project, the city and the nation to
the global economic dynamic that gave the World Trade Center its name
and its rationale. It also recounts the events of September 11 --
exploring the meaning of the attacks, and the attempt to rebuild and
recover from them.
"The
Reality of Reality: How Real is Real?" (Bravo Network, 9-10pm E/P) This is the initial
documentary in a series about the whole idea of "reality television".
It examines these programs from the time they are thought up to the
point where they are filmed and assembled for broadcast. These shows
have revolutionized television -- for better or worse. The documentary
series continues in this time slot, Monday through Thursday this week,
with episodes entitled "America's Instant Idols", " Behind the Scenes"
and "Everything New is Old".
Tuesday,
September 9
"The
Original Vampire" (Discovery Channel, 6-7pm E/P) This is a
documentary about mosquitos. Each year, 700 million people are infected
with mosquito-born diseases and three million die. This "vampire" has
four tiny saws for cutting flesh, lives for about a week and can lay
2,000 eggs at once. Research aims to stop this formidable foe.
"Tactical
to Practical" (History Channel, 9-10pm E/P) In this documentary,
former Navy fighter pilot and series host Hunter Ellis examines
military solutions to problems that crossed over into civilian life.
Examples: the four-wheel drive vehicle--from WWII Jeeps to the Humvee,
night vision technology, now used in law enforcement and wildlife
research and GPS (Global Positioning System) which came into its own in
Desert Storm and is about to make the compass obsolete. There's a
website about all this at http://www.historychannel.com/global/listings/series_showcase.jsp?EGrpType=Series&Id=8826020&NetwCode=THC
Wednesday,
September 10
"Sacred
Balance: The Matrix Of Life" (PBS, 8-9pm E/P) This documentary, an
episode in a series in which Canadian biologist David Suzuki presents a
new view of the history of science, describes how water and air move
endlessly together, atoms linking and de-linking to form ocean and
atmosphere. These are the sacred elements on which life depends. What
we do to them, we eventually end up doing to ourselves. Suzuki explains
how scientists are discovering just how complex this matrix is, where
water defies human boundaries and human ownership. Further episodes,
entitled "The Fire of Creation" and "Coming Home", air in this time
slot each Wednesday this month. There's a wonderful website about the
series at http://outreach.sacredbalance.com/, one feature of which is
an art contest for kids 10 14 years old who are interested in
environmental science.
"Thomas
L. Friedman Reporting: Searching for the Roots of 9/11" (Discovery
Channel, 10-11pm E/P) This documentary
presents a broad portrait of the roots of Muslim rage and the mistrust
towards America. Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist Tom
Friedman. conducted interviews in Indonesia, Qatar, Egypt and Moslem
enclaves in Europe. TV rated PG-V because footage of some violence is
presented.
Thursday,
September 11
"Remembering
September 11th: The President's Story" (The Learning Channel, 8-9pm E/P) This is a
documentary -- not a re-enactment with actors -- of the events on the
morning of September 11, 2001. It began routinely for George W. Bush in
Sarasota, Florida. But within hours he and others government officials
would be faced with terrorist attacks on America. Hear their story,
based on interviews conducted 2 years after the events plus news
footage of what they did on that day.
Friday,
September 12
"Gambling
Games -- Beating the House" (Discovery Channel, 9-12pm E/P) I don't like to
gamble. Life's too uncertain already. But you may have the urge... so
you better know the odds (consider this a math lesson). This
documentary looks into the techniques the pros use to win at popular
casino games, blackjack secrets and video poker. It also examine slot
machines from the inside out, including payout rates and the 'science'
of locating them on the casino floor. TV rated PG-L because some of
the people interviewed used strong language.
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