KCET's Award-Winning 'SoCal Connected' Takes Another Look at L.A.'s "Drop" Initiative and an Innovative Program Dealing with Postpartum Depression; Plus the First Pope to Retire in Centuries

Airing 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Nightly

Los Angeles, CA -

February 25, 2013 - This week, SoCal Connected investigates a

controversial program that was designed to keep cops and firemen on the job,

but may in fact be costing the cash-strapped

city a lot of money. The DROP program allows some city employees to

"double dip" by receiving a salary and a pension at the same time.

Judy Muller reports there are now some city employees earning over a million

dollars. Next, Vince Gonzales investigates postpartum depression and finds that

suicide is now the leading cause of death among young mothers. Finally, as the

Pope prepares to step down at the end of the month, SoCal Connected will

present reports from Rome on the challenges

for the next Pope.

Correspondent

Judy Muller investigates LA's "DROP" (Deferred Retirement Option Plan) program

for LAPD and LA City Fire Personnel. The program, enacted a few years ago,

effectively allows members of both organizations to 'double dip' the system,

receiving both a salary and their pension at the same time for the last five

years on the job. Muller examines how over 3,000 officers have been able to use

DROP - and how many LA citizens are unaware of this pricey so-called "Retire for a Day" loophole.

Then, Madeleine Brand speaks to Washington Post reporter Aaron Blake

about the sequester that is set to take effect on March 1^st.

Los

Angeles is the first city in the US to offer a program for low-income and

minority women suffering from postpartum depression. Correspondent Vince

Gonzales examines why women of certain demographics and socio-economic

backgrounds are at a higher risk for the disorder and how Los Angeles is at the

forefront of pioneering programs to help them.

Also, Madeleine Brand interviews Raphael Sonenshein, Executive Director of the Pat Brown Institute at California State University, Los Angeles, about the city elections

set to take place at the beginning of March.

Following

the success of the ethno-archaeological book "Life at Home in the Twenty-First

Century," SoCal Connected anchor Val Zavala profiles what the lives of

those featured in the book look like and examines how the authors took an

archaeological approach to modern 'material culture.'

Afterwards,

Madeleine Brand interviews "Enlightened" screenwriter Mike White about his

thoughts on the prevalence of violence in Hollywood - and who he thinks should

take the blame.

In honor of Pope Benedict XVI's retirement, SoCal takes a look at the legacy

he will leave behind.

Then,

Madeleine Brand interviews Pulitzer Prize-winning author Lawrence Wright about

his new book on Scientology, "Going Clear."

Awards, 17 Emmy® Awards, 19 Golden Mikes, 41 LA Press

Club Awards, two Gracie Awards, and three regional Edward R. Murrow Awards,

including Best News Documentary and Los Angeles Magazine's "Best

New Local TV Program" of 2009, airs nightly at 5:30 p.m. with encores at

10:00 p.m. exclusively on KCET. For more information, to view episodes online

or to leave comments, please visit www.socalconnected.org.

SoCal Connected is made possible through the generous

support of The Ahmanson Foundation serving the Los Angeles community since

1952; Jim and Anne Rothenberg; the Maddocks Brown Foundation; The John Randolph

Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation; and The California Endowment. 

On-air, online and in the community, KCET plays a vital role in the

cultural and educational enrichment of Southern and Central California. KCET

offers a wide range of award-winning local programming as well as the finest

public television programs from around the world. KCET currently produces the

Emmy®, duPont-Columbia and Peabody Award-winning SoCal Connected, a

hard-hitting prime-time nightly television news program that examines the

issues and people of Southern California. Throughout its 48-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 website, kcet.org. KCET is a donor-supported community

institution. For additional information about KCET productions, web-exclusive

content, programming schedules and community events, please visit kcet.org.

CONTACT:

Ariel Carpenter

or Ayn Allen

KCET

Communications Department

747-201-5243; acarpenter@kcet.org

747-201-5886; aallen@kcet.org

or

Michelle Marron

or Liza Nedelman

MPRM

Communications

323-933-3399

mmarron@mprm.com

lnedelman@mprm.com

# # #