
--
PBS TO PREMIERE AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON
ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21
Special production to be moderated by Gwen Ifill
ARLINGTON, VA; September 14, 2015 PBS today announced plans to broadcast AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON, a one-hour town hall meeting that aims to explore the many issues propelled into public discourse after a white gunman shot and killed nine African-American parishioners in Charleston's Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in June 2015. Gwen Ifill, PBS NEWSHOUR co-anchor and managing editor, and moderator and managing editor of WASHINGTON WEEK, will moderate the special broadcast. AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON, produced for PBS by WETA Washington, DC, WGBH Boston and South Carolina ETV Network, with funds provided by PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, will air Monday, September 21, 2015, 9:00-10:00 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings).
The events in Charleston have sparked national conversations about the meaning and significance of the Confederate flag, put new focus on the political call to action, Black Lives Matter, and has made race and the changing demographic landscape a central topic in the 2016 elections. Through conversations with the families of the victims, Charleston civic leaders and commentators from across the country, this town hall special brings together a diverse range of voices to engage in constructive conversation about the issues raised by the events in South Carolina.
AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON will be taped just blocks from the site of the shootings, at the Circular Congregational Church before a live audience on Saturday, September 19. The special will engage audiences across digital platforms through exclusive web content, live social media integration during the broadcast and educational resources that will be made available to teachers and students.
The special airs one year after Ifill served as moderator for AMERICA AFTER FERGUSON, a national conversation, broadcast on PBS in September 2014, which explored the complex questions raised around race, class and identity in the wake of Michael Brown's death in Ferguson, Missouri.
I grew up as the child of an African Methodist Episcopal minister, so the murders at the Charleston church hit home for me, said Ifill. But this latest example of Americas unsettled racial climate does not stand alone. We are returning to Charleston to continue the conversation we began in Ferguson last year, and which has resonated in Baltimore, Cincinnati and Waller County, Texas, since.
All around the country, the events in Charleston stunned us and prompted frank discussion about race, tradition, guns, equality and opportunity, said PBS NEWSHOUR Executive Producer and Senior Vice President Sara Just. This year, on the brink of a presidential election, the country seems ready for a challenging conversation about our past and our future, around all of these tough issues. That is what we will do with this town meeting.
We are proud that millions of Americans turn to PBS as a trusted source of news and public affairs programming, said Marie Nelson, Vice President, News and Public Affairs, PBS. This event in Charleston and its aftermath have once again ignited a national debate over race and identity in America. Through its town hall format, AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON aims to give voices on a national stage to those that may not otherwise be heard. We invite the public to join us as we continue to have these important conversations on-air and across digital and social media platforms.
This will be an opportunity for Americans to share and to hear diverse viewpoints, said Denise DiIanni, Senior Executive in Charge for WGBH. Only public media could create the civic space through broadcast and social media for this important conversation to continue.
ETV's place in the media landscape has always been to document our state's history and culture, so adding our presence to this national project is both appropriate and meaningful, said Linda O'Bryon, SCETV President and CEO. The thoughtful conversations in Charleston have been like no other in the nation.
PBS LearningMedia, an online library with thousands of digital resources for K-12 teachers and students, will make digital assets from the show available to teachers and students. The additional material will complement a wide range of other content addressing gun violence and racism from other PBS programs such as Not in Our Town, A Path to Violence, After Newtown and U.S. Gun Homicides: Visualizing the Numbers.
AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON is a multi-platform initiative with diverse digital and social media integration. To help foster a national dialogue, PBS and its member stations will incorporate live tweets during the broadcast. Viewers are encouraged to engage in the conversation using the hashtag #AfterCharlestonPBS.
- PBS -
MEDIA GUIDANCE
Credentialed media wishing to cover the event must RSVP to Kate Kelly (WETA; kkelly@weta.org) by Thursday September 17, 2015. Full audio and video of AMERICA AFTER CHARLESTON will be embargoed until after its broadcast on PBS on September 21, and select portions will be sourced out by PBS and PBS NEWSHOUR prior to its broadcast.
About PBS NEWSHOUR
PBS NEWSHOUR is seen by over four million weekly viewers and is also available online, via public radio in select markets, and via podcast. PBS NEWSHOUR is a production of NewsHour Productions LLC, a wholly-owned non-profit subsidiary of WETA Washington, DC, in association with WNET in New York. Major funding for PBS NEWSHOUR is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, PBS and public television viewers. Major corporate funding is provided by BNSF, with additional support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, the J. Paul Getty Trust, the John D. and Catherine T. Mac
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
22/10/2025
MELVILLE, N.Y. Chyron has released PAINT 10.2, the latest update for its telestration platform, adding support for SMPTE ST 2110 IP workflows, expanding brandin...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON Run3TV today said NBCUniversal is joining as an investor in the ATSC 3.0 Framework Authority, which develops the Run3TV NextGen TV application platfo...
22/10/2025
ATLANTA swXtch.io will feature two new networking solutions extending the company's reach across more cloud and on-prem workflows at NAB Show New York, set ...
22/10/2025
The Warner Bros. Discoverys HBO Max streaming services has increased prices for all its streaming tiers effectively immediately for new customers. Existing cust...
22/10/2025
LOS ANGELES OpenDrives has signed a new distribution partnership deal with Versatile Distribution Services (VDS) to strengthen its channel and streamline how it...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Samora Pinderhughes Brings Immersive Sound to Berklee's Signature Series The artist and composer, who's worked with Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Co...
22/10/2025
BMI Day at Berklee Celebrates Composer Fil Eisler and Awards Scholarship to Stud...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Although AES Show Is on Its Own, Audio Will Be a Major Part o...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Business of Broadcast and Media,' Future of Content'...
21/10/2025
SVG All-Stars: Ethan Folz, Senior Director, Digital Operations and Quality of Ex...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: Livestream Offers Graphic Overlays, Predictive Gaming, Ancil...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: At the Front Bench With Producer Frank DiGraci and Director ...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: NBC Sports, NEP Build Ultra-Flexible Production Plan That Se...
21/10/2025
Indigenous storytelling has been at the heart of the work of the Sundance Instit...
21/10/2025
Top L-R: Mysterious Skin, American Dream Second Row L-R: Little Miss Sunshine, D...
21/10/2025
Last week, Spotify and Columbia Records transformed Pier 4 at the Brooklyn Army ...
21/10/2025
SBS Learn's Dharug Ngurra resource empowers classrooms to meaningfully celeb...
21/10/2025
As global operators simplify and evolve their digital platforms, NPS improvement...
21/10/2025
Critical Design Review completion is a key milestone on the path toward Wideband Global Satellite Communications certification for the network in 2026, opening ...
21/10/2025
New Australian undersea training range to implement and improve warfighting tactics, proficiency and safety; enable joint/allied training that contributes to pr...
21/10/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
21/10/2025
September, the beginning of autumn, brought an expected revival to the TV market, largely due to the new fall TV schedules. The time spent in front of the TV sc...
21/10/2025
Broadcast Booms with 20% Uptick vs. August, Achieving Largest Monthly
Increase ...
21/10/2025
During September, streaming's share of TV viewing in Mexico settled at 24.5%, a marginal shift of -0.5 share points from the previous month.
Disclaimer: YU...
21/10/2025
RENNES, France BBright and GlobalM have conducted a technical trial validating Ultra HD interoperability across the entire contribution chain in the cloud, achi...
21/10/2025
Kokusai Denki Electric America will mark the U.S. debut of a new 4K camera at the 2025 NAB New York, Oct. 22-23. Now available, the Z-HD6500-S1 UHD/HD productio...
21/10/2025
Triveni Digital, a trusted leader in ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 service delivery, data broadcasting, and quality assurance solutions, will showcase its entire NEXTGEN TV ...
21/10/2025
Radio Azzurra FM, longest-running radio station in the province of Novara, northwest Italy, has invested in an DHD SX2 audio routing and mixing console for inte...
21/10/2025
Globecast, the leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, has announced the appointment of G Morgan as Executive Vice President of...
21/10/2025
Visual Data announces the appointment of Maz Al-Jumaili as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Localization, to advance client engagement, strategic partnerships, ...
21/10/2025
As Amazon's Prime Video prepares to launch its coverage of NBA basketball under a major new deal, Grup Mediapro has announced that it is working with the st...
21/10/2025
ATLANTA Good news for consumers using an Atlanta DTH receiver to watch ATSC 3.0: with a new software update, they will be able to blanket their homes with Wi-Fi...
21/10/2025
While recent news has been heavily focused on Hispanic migration into the U.S., The 2025 Hispanic Market Report from Claritas highlights the fact that this gr...
21/10/2025
MAIDENHEAD, UK RWS has hired Michael Wayne as its head of media and entertainment in Los Angeles where he will lead the company's media localization busines...
21/10/2025
Imagine Communications and Rohde & Schwarz today announced a definitive agreement under which Imagine will acquire Pixel Power Limited, a wholly owned subsidiar...
21/10/2025
Atlanta DTH (ADTH) today announced a major update that will expand the functionality of its NEXTGEN TV receiver by enabling gateway capabilities allowing viewer...
21/10/2025
Heartland Video Systems, Inc. (HVS), a premier video systems integration, consulting, and expert ATSC 3.0 implementation firm announces that it has partnered wi...
21/10/2025
QuickLink, the leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest integration solutions, today announced the appointment of Austin Hinton as it...
21/10/2025
nternet connectivity startup Miri Technologies Inc. will use this week's NAB Show New York as the launch pad for its latest ground-breaking innovation, the ...
21/10/2025
Coastal communities in the U.S. have a 26% chance of flooding within a 30-year period. This percentage is expected to increase due to climate-change-driven sea-...
21/10/2025
In today's evolving media landscape, audience measurement isn't one-size-fits-all. With multiple measurement providers now available, networks need the ...
21/10/2025
21 Oct 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan to Acquire Online Classifieds Busines...
21/10/2025
October 21st, 2025
Tribeca Films to Release Independent Comedy Serious People...
21/10/2025
Synthogy is excited to announce the launch of Ivory 3 LE Uprights - Modern & Vintage, the latest addition to our game-changing Ivory 3 platform. This Legacy Ed...
21/10/2025
Series from Sony Music Vision Features Exclusive Performances From Legendary Bas...
21/10/2025
Tuesday 21 October 2025
Current slide, 0 0, undefined1
0
Download assets
Buying a home ranks above becoming a parent as a key rite of passage into adulthood...
21/10/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils Monster Mash in Trailer of Troll 2' - the...
21/10/2025
Back to All News
For the Fans! Netflix Goes Golden Forging Unprecedented KPop ...