PBS SOCAL REFLECTS ON NEWTOWN TRAGEDY WITH SPECIAL WEEKLONG PROGRAMING FROM FEB. 18 TO FEB. 22
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In response to the tragic shootings in Newtown, Conn., PBS SoCaL will broadcast a series of thought-provoking documentaries and news pieces the week of February 18-22. These special magazine and news pieces are meant to add context, depth and nuance to the national conversation about gun violence in America.
• “PBS NewsHour”: Monday, February 18 to Friday, February 22, 6 p.m.
Each night, PBS NewsHour anchors Gwen Ifill and Jeffrey Brown will cover issues surrounding the Newtown school shooting on the last segment of the show.
• “Guns in America”: Tuesday, February 19, 9 p.m.
Americans have relied on guns to sustain communities, challenge authority and keep the peace. Efforts to curtail their distribution and ownership have triggered epic political battles. This documentary is an exploration of America’s enduring relationship with firearms.
• “Frontline: Raising Adam Lanza”: Tuesday, February 19, 10 p.m.
In the wake of the mass killings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, this episode of Frontline investigates killer Adam Lanza’s motives, and his life, which remain largely a mystery.
• “NOVA: Mind of a Rampage Killer”: Wednesday, February 20, 9 p.m.
What makes a human being commit the most inhuman of crimes? As the nation tries to understand the tragic events in Newtown, Conn., NOVA correspondent Miles O’Brien investigates theories that rampage killers are driven most of all by the wish to die, not the urge to kill, and most importantly, is it possible to prevent those mass killings?
• “The Path to Violence”: Wednesday, February 20, 10 p.m.
This documentary details a powerfully effective Secret Service program — the Safe School Initiative — that’s helped schools detect problem behavior. However, despite progress, recent shooters like Adam Lanza, Jared Loughner and James Holmes all executed their attacks after they’d left their schools. In such cases, parents may be the first and only line of defense — parents who receive inadequate help from the mental health and legal systems.
• “Washington Week”: Friday, February 22, 8 p.m.
Gwen Ifill sits down with Washington Week regulars to discuss pending legislation on access to guns.
• “Need to Know”: Friday, February 22, 8:30 p.m.
This new episode of “Need to Know” embeds a 90 second segment produced by PBS SoCaL featuring three Southern California residents from One Million Moms for Gun Control discussing the irreparable damage of losing a loved one to gun violence.
About PBS SoCaL
PBS SoCaL, formerly KOCE-TV, is Southern California’s PBS station dedicated to interactively educating, entertaining, and enlightening the greater Los Angeles area. With its three unique broadcast channels. PBS SoCaL HD, PBS OC, and WORLD TV, PBS SoCaL provides award-winning programs like Frontline, NewsHour, NOVA, Nature, and Masterpiece, as well as local productions Real Orange, SoCaL Insider With Rick Reiff, and Bookmark With Maria Hall-Brown. Through community outreach initiatives including PBS SoCaL Education, PBS SoCaL provides local schools access to new media materials that engage students in 21st century learning. Explore the future of PBS in Southern California at www.pbssocal.org.
