Celebrate the 10th anniversary of this spectacular concert and experience the dazzling artistry of the world’s most popular tenor. Recorded on a rainy night in September 2011 in one of the world’s most iconic parks, stars Céline Dion, Tony Bennett, Chris Botti and David Foster joined classical performers for a mix of opera and pop in a magical gift of music to the city of New York. Airs on Friday, December 3 at 8:00 pm.
Birthdays
None this time, but a bunch in the 2nd half of December!
WPSU Radio Highlights
In Case You Missed It . . .
WPSU Health Minute: Health Benefits of Chocolate
Chocolate, specifically dark chocolate, has many health benefits. Chocolate has high levels of flavonoids. These compounds can lower blood pressure and cholesterol, which can reduce the risk of heart disease, improve the functioning of the coronary artery and prevent blood clots. Listen here.
Take Note: Dr. Jill Harrington On Using Superheroes To Talk To Kids About Grief WPSU's Lindsey Whissel Fernton talks with Dr. Jill Harrington, creator and lead editor of the textbook, “Superhero Grief: The Transformative Power of Loss,” which uses modern superhero narratives as fictional case studies to teach grief theory promote healing.
Penn Highlands Healthcare Says About A Third Of Its Employees Still Need To Get Vaccinated To Comply With A Federal Mandate WPSU’s Min Xian reported the story that Penn Highlands Healthcare system fully intends to comply with a federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. CMS is requiring all U.S. healthcare workers at health care facilities that participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs to get vaccinated by January 4th, 2022.
WPSU Television Highlights
Midsomer Murders “The Curse of the Ninth” — Thursday, December 2 at 8:00 pm
Barnaby and Winter uncover multiple motives when the winner of a fought-after music award is found strangled with a violin string, moments before a performance. The possible motives include rivalry over the prize, disagreements about the music festival business, and a missing Stradivarius violin.
Great Performances “Andrea Bocelli: Live in Central Park” — Friday, December 3 at 8:00 pm
Superstar tenor Andrea Bocelli takes on one of the biggest stages of his career for a concert in New York City's famed Central Park with the New York Philharmonic. Showcasing his unmistakable soaring vocals, Bocelli sings a variety of classical favorites as well as many of his most popular signature songs. The 2011 performance, recorded live from Central Park with an audience of over 75,000 fans, also features special guests from the worlds of opera and popular music.
Upstart Crow Christmas Specials — Saturday, December 4 at 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm
David Mitchell stars, and Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh guest star, in two special Christmas-themed episodes of Ben Elton's Shakespearean comedy.
Santa School — Saturday, December 4 at 9:00 pm
A heartwarming film that follows six would-be Santa Clauses as they take an intensive workshop to learn to dress, walk, and talk like Santa. But who are they and what inspires them to take this path?
Ken Burns’ Country Music Marathon — Monday, December 6 through Saturday, December 11
Explore the history of a uniquely American art form: country music. From its deep and tangled roots in ballads, blues and hymns performed in small settings, to its worldwide popularity, learn how country music evolved over the course of the 20th century, as it eventually emerged to become America’s music. The eight-part 16-hour series is directed and produced by Ken Burns, and written and produced by Dayton Duncan.
WBCN and the American Revolution - Monday, December 13 at 9:00 pm
The amazing, untold story of the radical underground radio station WBCN-FM, set against the dazzling and profound social, political, and cultural changes that took place in Boston and nationally during the late-1960s and early-70s. It's "the incredible, true story of how a radio station, politics, and rock 'n' roll changed everything."
The Nutcracker and the Mouse King - Tuesday, December 14 at 8:00 pm
Join Alan Cumming for the real story of the Nutcracker and the Mouse King with the beloved music of Tchaikovsky. Featuring the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under the direction of John Mauceri, this new version is a rare holiday treat.
Nature “Santa’s Wild Home” - Wednesday, December 15 at 8:00 pm
Get an intimate look into life in Lapland, fabled land of Santa Claus and actual home of tenacious wildlife such as reindeer, wolverines, Brown bears and more.
Industry News
WETA To Take Control Of ‘NewsHour Weekend’ With Geoff Bennett As Host
Geoff Bennett will join PBS NewsHour as chief Washington correspondent and host of PBS NewsHour Weekend next year when production of the weekend program moves to WETA in Washington, D.C. Bennett will anchor PBS NewsHour Weekend beginning in April. Production of the show will move from the WNET Group in New York City to WETA, which already produces the weeknight NewsHour anchored by managing editor Judy Woodruff. NewsHour Weekend, which launched in 2013, is a co-production of the Creative News Group and NewsHour Productions in association with WNET and WETA. Hari Sreenivasan, currently NewsHour Weekend anchor, will remain in New York and continue as a contributor for Amanpour & Company and host of Take on Fake, a YouTube series produced by WNET. He may also contribute occasionally to NewsHour in the coming months depending on his availability.
How Cokie Roberts Landed At NPR: ‘They Wanted Her Included Because They Loved Her’
In his new book, Cokie: A Life Well Lived, journalist Steve Roberts looks back on the life and career of his wife of 53 years, Cokie Roberts. In an interview this month with NPR’s Steve Inskeep, Steve Roberts said, “This is the way I mourn. This is the way I embraced her memory.” Cokie died in 2019 of complications from breast cancer. Her husband’s book is based on dozens of interviews with friends and colleagues. In this excerpt, Steve recalls how Cokie came to work at NPR in 1978. Listen to the NPR interview here.
Governmental Relations
FEDERAL NEWS
On November 19th, the House passed the $1.75 trillion Build Back Better reconciliation bill by a partisan vote of 220-213. This comes after the bipartisan infrastructure package was signed into law on Monday, November 15, 2021. The Senate will most likely need to make changes to the Build Back Better package to ensure the support of all 50 Democratic Senators.
Our lobbyist in Washington, America’s Public Television Stations (APTS), are pleased to report that the Build Back Better bill, as passed by the House, includes a payroll tax credit for organizations that employ local journalists. This provision, if signed into law, will help public broadcasting stations hire additional local reporters and enhance their journalism in other ways. APTS has been collaborating with NPR to support their efforts to include this provision and APTS will continue to follow this closely as the process moves forward.
Unfortunately, while the original $3.5 trillion reconciliation package included $24 million for public broadcasting public safety infrastructure, that provision was not included in the substantially scaled back version of the bill released in mid-November.
While the legislation is not finalized yet, it is an uphill battle for any provisions to be added back in. APTS is continuing to look for opportunities to advance this funding, including in potential additional reconciliation bills in 2022.
STATE NEWS
Pennsylvania Senate President pro Tempore Jake Corman (R-Centre County) announced Monday, November 15th he is running for governor, jumping into the crowded GOP primary. Historically, Senator Corman has been a part of the Public TV Caucus in Harrisburg and has voted for funding public media. Most recently, he was to to meet with representatives from Pennsylvania PBS including WPSU that has been rescheduled to a future date TBD.
All PA PBS stations continue to advocate for increased state funding for public media.
Tis' a Puzzlement
BERLIN – German police are looking for witnesses after burglars broke through the wall of a toy store to steal dozens of Lego sets. Police said Tuesday that the theft took place over the weekend in the western town of Lippstadt. The burglars left about 100 empty cardboard boxes behind, German news agency dpa reported. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the burglars had taken the instruction books. [AP - 11/30/21]
Quoteables
The holidays is the season when you buy this year’s gifts with next year’s money.
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