Last Tango in Halifax
After a three-year absence, the heartwarming family drama Last Tango in Halifax is set to return to PBS and WPSU for sesason four on Sunday, September 20 at 8pm. The show is a BAFTA Award-winning tale of second chances, focusing on the story of Alan and Celia, two former teenage sweethearts who rediscover each other and fall in love all over again 50 years later.
Birthdays
9/16 - Joel Watkins
9/26 - Jen Bortz
9/28 - Russ Rockwell
WPSU Radio Highlights
BookMark 09/17 & 09/20 – “The Mountains Sing” by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai.
On BookMark, the community book review show, WPSU listeners talk about the books they’ve recently enjoyed. This week — a multigenerational account of 20th-century Vietnam. Reviewer David Marvin is an insurance agent with the Robert Mannino Insurance Agency in State College. He’s also a volunteer radio host for WPSU.
In Case You Missed It . . .
Penn State COVID-19 Cases Up By Nearly 500 This Week, Centre County Tops 1,000 Total
The number of COVID-19 cases increased to 708 at Penn State university-wide, as it updated its COVID-19 dashboard for the week of Sept. 4 to 10 on Friday. That’s a total of 493 new cases since last Friday’s update. While university President Eric Barron said administrators remain concerned about the spread of the coronavirus, the university is not moving to remote instruction. WPSU’s Min Xian has the full story.
Voting 2020: Mail-In Ballots in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, it used to be that you needed an excuse to vote by mail. You had to apply for what’s called an “absentee ballot.” But in this presidential election year, things are different. Act 77, signed into law last fall, allows any registered voter in Pennsylvania to choose to vote by mail-in ballot instead of going to the polls on election day. Kris Allen reports.
Take Note: Autism Speaks' Janet Williams On Autism In The Black Community
Janet Williams is the Director of Community Outreach for the mid and South Atlantic regions at Autism Speaks. In her latest article, "Making Progress Toward the Dream: Autism in the Black Community," Williams shares her thoughts about the barriers to autism diagnosis in the Black community. She recently started Autism Speaks' newest interfaith initiative called "Blue Blessings" to help faith-based communities create more inclusive spaces for people with autism. WPSU’s Kirsten Tekavec led the conversation.
WPSU Television Highlights
Islands of Wonder - Wednesdays at 8:00 pm, September 16-30
This 3-part series journeys to three of the most exotic, mysterious and remote islands on the planet: Madagascar, Borneo and Hawaii. Isolated from the rest of the world, they harbor remarkable wildlife and pioneering human communities found nowhere else on Earth.
NOVA “Secret Mind of Slime” - Wednesday, September 16 at 9:00 pm
Scientists investigate the bizarre "intelligence" of slime molds, which appear to learn and make decisions -- without a brain. These cunning, single-celled blobs can navigate mazes and create efficient networks. Can they also redefine cognition?
Now Hear This: Haydn: King of Strings (Great Performances) - Friday, September 18 at 9:00 pm
Explore the work of famed composer Joseph Haydn's career with host Scott Yoo and featured guest artists as he discovers how Haydn folk music from Scotland, Hungary and Austria to create his famous "Emperor Quartet."
The Carol Burnett Show - Carol’s Favorites (WPSU Premiere) - Saturdays at 8:00 pm starting September 19
One of the most popular and beloved variety series in the history of television comes to WPSU. The 15 episodes in this series were selected by Carol herself as among her favorites.
Last Tango in Halifax - Season 4 Premiere - Sunday, September 20 at 8:00 pm
Follow the surprising and uplifting journey of Celia and Alan as they rekindle a passionate relationship after 60 years apart. Their marriage is proof that, whatever your age, relationships will always be complicated.
FRONTLINE “The Choice 2020: Trump vs Biden” - Tuesday, September 22 at 9:00 pm
Investigating the lives and characters of Joe Biden and Donald Trump as they compete to be president. Those who know them best reveal key moments that made both men and shape how they would lead America through a time of crisis.
Conversations Live! - Covid-19 - Thursday, September 24 at 8:00 pm
Covid-19 is the topic of the next Conversations Live on WPSU
Battling Opioids - Part 6 - Thursday, September 24 at 9:00 pm
Part six of the Pennsylvania PBS series focuses on the impact Covid-19 is having on the opioid epidemic. We’ll hear stories from people in recovery and how their treatments are being affected by the pandemic.
The Campaign of Miner Bo - Thursday, September 24 at 10:00 pm
After his conversation with presidential candidate Hillary Clinton goes viral and makes him one of the faces of the 2016 election, unemployed coal miner Bo Copley runs for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in West Virginia. But without much money or experience, he quickly discovers that being a politician is harder than it looks.
PBS NewsHour Debates 2020 “Presidential Debate” - Tuesday, September 29, 2020
PBS NewsHour provides live coverage and analysis of the first of three 2020 Presidential debates.
Governmental Relations
State Funding
As part of Pennsylvania PBS, WPSU will receive state funds as Governor Wolf Dedicates $15 Million to Connect Students to High-Speed Internet, Remote-Learning
Governor Tom Wolf announced last Thursday that his office is dedicating $15 million in Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Funds for schools to secure broadband, mobile hot spots, and other platforms that increase equitable access to mobile learning. Pennsylvania PBS, will receive $8 million to establish a statewide datacasting initiative for those students who lack Internet access. Datacasting uses over-the-air TV signals to deliver educational content that can be used on devices without having to access the Internet. Using a datacasting antenna, students can download lesson plans, videos and worksheets from their schools. The Federal CARES Act authorizes governors to determine the educational use of GEER Funds. “The COVID-19 pandemic has forced our schools to rethink and rework how to provide instruction to students who are learning completely at home or in a hybrid model,” said Gov. Wolf.
Federal Funding
On Thursday, September 10, the Senate voted on the latest Republican COVID-19 relief proposal, S. 178, the Delivering Immediate Relief to America’s Families, Schools and Small Businesses Act. The bill failed by a vote of 52-47, with every Democrat opposing the package for being too narrow. All Republicans, with the exception of Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky, supported the measure.
The smaller, targeted proposal included additional resources for small businesses and schools, increased unemployment benefits, and funding for coronavirus testing and vaccine development. While the earlier Senate Republican proposal, the HEALS Act, contained $175 million in additional emergency assistance for public broadcasters, that funding was not included in the legislation the Senate voted on this week.
Amidst stalled negotiations, the next steps for a COVID-19 relief package are unclear. America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) will continue to monitor these discussions and advocate for additional emergency funding for local stations.
Industry News
PBS Expands One-Click Donations To Amazon Fire TV
PBS is rolling out a one-click donation feature through its Passport video-on-demand member benefit on Amazon Fire TV. The new feature will prompt Amazon Fire TV users without Passport access to select a member station and give a one-time or recurring monthly donation to view Passport programming. Donors who already have Passport access can bypass that process, according to a PBS web page for stations. Donations are collected from Amazon’s platform and transferred to the PBS Foundation, then distributed to stations through Stripe, a financial services company.
Vermont PBS, Vermont Public Radio Announce Plans To Merge By July 2021
The boards of Vermont PBS and Vermont Public Radio unanimously voted Wednesday to merge their organizations into one public media station. The joint station is scheduled to launch July 1, 2021, pending FCC and IRS approval. VPR and Vermont PBS will continue to operate independently throughout the integration period. VPR CEO Scott Finn will lead the new organization. Steve Ferreira, acting CEO of Vermont PBS, will be COO. The new board will consist of VPR and Vermont PBS directors.
Quacked Up
Three teenage girls in Clinton, Connecticut, have been arrested and charged with stealing a duck after photos of them surfaced on social media, according to police. WTNH reported the girls took a duck named Quackers out of a pen in mid-August at the Grove Garden Center Nursery, where it was recovering from a raccoon attack, and posted photos of themselves with Quackers at the town beach and a house party. The girls were charged with larceny and trespassing. Quackers is still missing. [WTNH, 9/10/2020]
Quotables
"Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city." - George Burns
Resources and Tips
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