CONTACT:Amanda Martin
amartin@kcet.org
747-201-5727
KCETLink Returns To the 2015 LA Times Festival of Books Featuring Special Appearances by KCETs Award-Winning Anchor Val Zavala
and EAGLE from SPACE RACERS Animated TV Series
Hourly Giveaways and Daily Raffles Spotlight KCETLinks Award-Winning Programming Including SOCAL CONNECTED, SPACE RACERS, EARTH FOCUS, HUELL HOWSER, RICK STEVES EUROPE and CITY WALK
BURBANK, Calif. - April 13, 2015 - KCETLink Media Group announced today that the national independent, non-profit digital and broadcast network plans to return to the annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books in spectacular fashion on Saturday, April 18 and Sunday, April 19 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Saturday) and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Sunday) in Booth 101 at the USC campus in downtown Los Angeles. The lineup of activities over both days includes top-of-the-hour giveaways of KCETLink merchandise. Special guests include Emmy Award-winning SOCAL CONNECTED Anchor and Executive Producer Val Zavala as well as costumed character EAGLE from the recent Parents Choice Award-winning animated program SPACE RACERS . Also highlighted at this years booth will be the recently announced upcoming EARTH FOCUS special Ivory: Crime, Corruption and Terrorism airing on KCET and on Link TV (DirecTV 375 and DISH Network 9410) on May 28.
The animated series SPACE RACERS will be prominently featured in the KCETLink tent in order to show off the shows recent award recognition as a Parents Choice Award winner. SPACE RACERS follows young spaceship cadets at the Stardust Space Academy as they soar through the solar system. Created in conjunction with NASA experts, the series follows spaceships: EAGLE, HAWK, ROBYN, STARLING and RAVEN, along with their fellow cadets and teachers at the Stardust Space Academy. The show airs Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 a.m. PT only on KCET. A costumed character version of EAGLE will be on hand to join in the fun at the KCETLink booth with SPACE RACERS themed books and posters.
In addition, the KCETlink booth will promote the upcoming May special edition of the critically acclaimed series EARTH FOCUS entitled Ivory: Crime, Corruption and Terrorism which uncovers the devastating effects of the illegal ivory trade, and the link between this illicit activity with insurgent groups and organized crime. This groundbreaking episode of EARTH FOCUS, the longest-running environmental series on American television, comes during a pivotal time when African elephants may be gone in as little as ten years as a result of poaching for illegal ivory sales. A special sneak peek of the episode will be featured during primetime on both KCET and Link TV on April 22 at 8 p.m. PT/ET.
The April 8 episode of SOCAL CONNECTED, KCETs Emmy and Peabody Award-winning series, was inspired by the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books and celebrated the culture of reading in the City of Angels (accessed at http://www.kcet.org/shows/socal_connected/). First, Val Zavala tours the offices of the countrys fourth largest newspaper with its 14th and newest publisher, Austin Beutner. Another segment, including commentary by Los Angeles Times book critic David L. Ulin, examines the phenomenon of Little Libraries popping up in neighborhoods across Los Angeles, which invites people to take a book and leave a book. Other segments include a profile of L.A. Poet Laureate Luis Rodriguez and an exploration of downtown L.A.s The Last Bookstore. SOCAL CONNECTED, now in its sixth season, can be seen Wednesday at 8 p.m. PT.
The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is also an opportunity for KCETLink to sign up new viewers for its bi-weekly e-Newsletter, which includes the most recent updates on programming and events. The KCET 50th Anniversary Community kiosk will be present to highlight visitors viewpoints and suggestions as well as engage festival-goers by asking the question: How has reading inspired a better state?
The schedule for the KCETLink booth during the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is as follows:
KCETLink booth schedule - Saturday, April 18
(The first 25 people to arrive to the booth will receive):
10 a.m. SPACE RACERS Mars Adventure books- live appearance by EAGLE
11 a.m. SPACE RACERS posters - live appearance by EAGLE
Noon The Edible Garden DVDs - appearance by Val Zavala
1 p.m. KCETLink CITY WALK stainless steel water bottle - appearance by Val Zavala
2 p.m. Limited edition KCET 50th anniversary car shades - appearance by Val Zavala
3 p.m. Bracing for a Quake DVDs - appearance by Val Zavala + *Raffle for (5) Earthquake kits*
4 p.m. KCETLink CITY WALK exclusive stainless steel water bottles
5 p.m. CITY WALK Season One DVD/CD sets
KCETLink booth schedule - Sunday, April 19
(The first 25 people to arrive to the booth will receive):
10 a.m. SPACE RACERS Mars Adventure books - live appearance by EAGLE
11 a.m. SPACE RACERS posters - live appearance by EAGLE
Noon KCETLink CITY WALK stainless steel water bottles
1 p.m. Things That Arent Here Anymore-3 DVDs
2 p.m. KCET Limited Edition 50th anniversary car shades
3 p.m. KCETLink CITY WALK exclusive stainless steel water bottles
4 p.m. Things That Arent Here Anymore-3 DVDs
To learn more, please visit http://events.latimes.com/festivalofbooks/
ABOUT KCETLINK MEDIA GROUP
KCETLink Media Group, formed by the merger between KCET and Link Media, is a national independent, nonprofit, digital and broadcast network that provides high-quality, culturally diverse programming designed to engage the public in innovative, entertaining and transformative ways. With a commitment to independent perspectives, smart global entertainment, local communities, and opportunities for engagement and social action, KCETLink depicts people and the world through a lens unavailable elsewhere in U.S. media. A viewer-supported 501(c)(3) organization, KCETLink content
