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SoCal Connected - Upcoming Episodes

KCET Green Takes Weeklong Look At Environment October 19 - 24 and Marks Unprecedented Commitment to Bringing Viewers Multiple Perpectives on Important Issues
KCET GREEN, an issues-oriented programming initiative by the West Coast flagship station of PBS, presents a week of environmental programming from Sunday October 19 - Friday, October 24. While the week will be focused around Frontline's "Heat," a two-hour documentary about global warming, several KCET productions will contribute original programming, including Huell Howser's California's Water, Tavis Smiley and SoCal Connected. In addition, KCET will premiere a The American Southwest: Are we Running Dry?, narrated and hosted by actress Jane Seymour. Seymour will also appear live on KCET Thursday, October 23 to introduce the documentary.

"This is an unprecedented commitment to look at the environment through multiple platforms and numerous programs because KCET is dedicated to providing viewers with in-depth and substantive coverage of important issues," said KCET President and CEO Al Jerome.

The week's programming consists of:

Sunday, October 19 - Nova "Saved By the Sun" (10:00 - 11:00 p.m.), presents the latest thinking from solar enthusiasts and skeptics as it investigates cutting-edge research developments in the race to make solar power practical. Immediately following is Drinking Water: To Quench a Public Thirst (11:00 p.m. - midnight). This documentary, produced by narrated by actress Wendie Malick, highlights where California's drinking water comes from, how it's treated and what people can do to protect water quality.

Monday, October 20 - Tavis Smiley (7:00 - 7:30 p.m. and 11:00 - 11:30 p.m.) features
Van Jones, founder and president of Green for All, who will speak about his new book The Green Collar Economy (HarperCollins, Oct. 7). Jones, an advocate on how creating a green economy can benefit society, has been described by former Vice President Al Gore as someone who "demonstrates conclusively that the best solutions for the survivability of our planet are also the best solutions for everyday Americans." Tavis Smiley is a production of KCET Los Angeles and TS Media, Inc.

Tuesday, October 21 - Frontline "Heat" is a two-hour special about the impact of big business on global warming. For years, big business - from oil and coal companies to electric utilities to car manufacturers - has resisted change to environmental policy and stifled the debate over climate change in America and around the globe. Now, facing rising pressure from governments, green groups and investors alike, big business is reshaping its approach to the environment. With the election looming, Frontline producer Martin Smith investigates what some businesses are doing to fend off new regulations and how others are repositioning themselves to prosper in a radically changed world.

Wednesday October 22 - California's Water with Huell Howser (7:30 - 8:00 p.m.) takes a look at what the city of Long Beach has done to address water shortage in "Tightening Our Water Belt." Howser spotlights the innovative ideas and cutting-edge techniques helping one city conserve as much water as possible.

Thursday, October 23 - The SoCal Connected (8:00 - 8:30 p.m) segment "Too Poor to go Green" looks at the growing problem of communities that can't afford to comply with expensive and complicated environmental regulations - at a time when those towns and cities are experiencing declining revenues. SoCal Connected's investigation focuses on a contentious dispute between the L.A.Regional Water Control Board and 27 cities that claim they can't afford the environmental fixes. While this story focuses on this dispute in Southern California, SoCal Connected will also report on the growing problem around the state and the country. The broadcast also includes a witty "eco-skeptical" commentary by Sandra Tsing Loh.

Thursday, October 23 - Jane Seymour appears live at KCET to talk about The American Southwest: Are We Running Dry? (8:30 - 10:00 p.m.), a documentary narrated and hosted by Seymour about the water crisis in the western United States. From land-use planning and water needs of cities in the Southwest to the relentless drought and affects of record low precipitation, the film looks at how diminishing water levels impact vital water sources such as Lake Powell, Lake Mead, the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta system, the Rio Grande and the Colorado River.

Beyond broadcast, the award-winning kcet.org presents its original Web-exclusive feature series Web Stories, with two online series about the environment. With a target launch date of Friday, October 24, and co-produced with Christopher Hawthorne, architectural critic of the Los Angeles Times and author of the book The Green House: New Directions in Sustainable Architecture, Web Stories will take a look at the development of low-income housing and green architecture in Southern California. Similarly, the series "Sustaining L.A.," currently online at kcet.org, is an in-depth look at how local communities approach and understand sustainability. The series includes features on rethinking our relationship to food and public space in "Fallen Fruit <http://www.kcet.org/explore-ca/web-stories/sustaining/fallen_fruit.php> ," explorations of the various ecologies that make up Los Angeles in "Los Angeles Urban Rangers <http://www.kcet.org/explore-ca/web-stories/sustaining/urban_rangers.php > ," and the Descanso Garden's efforts to encourage domestic food gardening in "Edible Estates ."

About KCET
KCET, public television for southern and central California is watched by four million viewers a week in 11 counties, the largest broadcast reach of any public television station in the United States. Throughout its more than 40-year history, KCET has won hundreds of major awards for its local and regional news and public affairs programming, its national drama and documentary productions, its quality educational family and children's programs, its outreach and community services, and its Web site, kcet.org. KCET is donor-supported community television. More than half of the funds raised to support KCET's operating budget come from individual support. For additional information about KCET productions, Web-exclusive content, programming schedules and community events, please visit www.kcet.org.