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These listings cover television programs up to Friday, September 26th.
Greetings, TV viewers!
If you want to participate in the media hour discussion on Wednesday,
September 24, take a look at the PBS program the day before. It's an
introduction to a big topic -- the changing attitudes these days about race in
America. The issue can't be ignored. But to some people it's a non-issue.
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 to 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 19
"First in Flight: Wright Brothers" (Discovery Channel, 8-10 p.m. E/P) In
this documentary, filmed nearly a century after the Wright brothers built the
first powered aircraft, a modern team of engineers is building a reproduction of
the 1903 Wright Flyer. From original notes, blueprints and photos, they uncover
the Wright brother's technical secrets. There's a cool website about this at
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/wright/flights/flights.html.
"NOW -- With Bill Moyers" (PBS, 9-10 p.m. E/P) The main story in this
newsmagazine is about environmental protection and the struggle of the woman who
formerly led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to straddle the line
between White House and environmental science. If you're a girl interested in
science or politics -- a difficult combination -- watch this program. Christine
Todd Whitman arrived in Washington to head the EPA with commendable credentials
as a former governor of New Jersey who supported pro-environmental policies. But
her work there was criticized by environmentalists as a period of setback for
environmental protection. In May, barely two years into the job, she resigned.
In a candid interview, Whitman discusses the influence of the White House in EPA
decision making, including the EPA's controversial assurances in the days after
9-11 that the air in New York was safe, and why global warming was omitted from
a recent EPA report card on the environment.
Saturday, September 20
"Captains Of The Clouds" (Turner Classic Movies Network, 2-4 p.m. ET/ 11am-1
p.m. PT) This movie, set just before WWII, is about a tough Canadian
bush-pilot who delivers air mail to remote territories -- but after listening to
Churchill's famous "Blood, Sweat and Tears" radio address he and some other
pilots decide to join the Royal Canadian Air Force to fight Germans. Due to the
fact, that he doesn't like to obey orders he gets into trouble with his
commanding officers. But he eventually proves worth to the Commonwealth's cause
when he gets into combat. Stars James Cagney. Available in video.
Sunday, September 21
"60 Minutes" (CBS, 7-8 p.m. E/P) The lead story in this newsmagazine is
about the hidden costs of petroleum-based energy production. Entitled "Cooking
With Gas", it examines the situation in Alaska, a state with not only has huge
reserves of natural gas, but enough political clout to get taxpayers to
subsidize the enormous expense of delivering it to the lower 48 states.
Tuesday, September 23
"Matters of Race -- Parts I and II" (PBS, 9-11 p.m. E/P) This is a
broadcast of the initial two episodes in a documentary miniseries which
challenges its audience to reconsider ordinary ideas about race, its role in
American democracy and its relationship to power in America. The first film,
"The Divide" examines the impact of Mexican and Central American immigrants on
the American South. The second, "Race Is, Race Isn't" profiles King-Drew Medical
Center -- a hospital vital to Los Angeles's African American community -- and
how its leadership is dealing with the Latino population now making up most of
its patients. Further information at http://pbs.org/mattersofrace/.
Wednesday, September 23
"Matters of Race -- Parts III and IV" (PBS, 9-11 p.m. E/P) The third
film, "Were Still Here", in this miniseries about race, looks at how two
often-overlooked populations -- American Indians and Native Hawaiians -- define
community and deal with the pressures of race. The final episode, "Tomorrow's
America", examines youth culture and the values of the younger generation, which
have been influenced by cultural cross-pollination and mass media. These themes
are developed further at http://pbs.org/mattersofrace/.
Thursday, September 25
"Dying to Leave" (PBS, 9-11 p.m. E/P) This is a documentary about
immigration -- not the warm and fuzzy kind that involves scenes of multi-ethnic
crowds clutching little American or Canadian flags and reciting a oath of
allegiance. This one's about the estimated 4 million people a year who
come to rich countries from poor countries illegally and end up hiding from the
law and exploited in their 'host' country -- forced to work in sweatshops and
criminal activities. The program puts a human face on the worldwide scope
of this issue by profiling individual immigrants from several countries. There's
an accompanying website at http://pbs.org/wideangle/.
Friday, September 26
"Secret Life of the Tiger" (Discovery Channel, 5-6 p.m. E/P) From looking
at pictures of tigers, especially as filmed straight from the front, I have
always thought that they looked like they have secrets. They do. In this
documentary you'll learn things about their hunting techniques, endurance, speed
and teamwork that are rather different from the myths that surround this
creature.
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