WORLD Channel Presents the Landmark Television Series Eyes on the Prize I and II To a New Generation of Viewers, Plus Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, a WORLD Special January 7, 2016 (Boston, MA) – Public television's WORLD Channel will present the complete Emmy→-­‐-­‐-­‐ Award winning Eyes on the Prize I and II starting January 17, 2016. A 30-­‐-­‐-­‐minute special feature, Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, will launch the encore presentation of this historic two-­‐-­‐-­‐part series and explore its impressive relevance today. Eyes on the Prize, created by Executive Producer Henry Hampton, is a critically-­‐-­‐-­‐acclaimed and in-­‐-­‐-­‐depth documentary series on civil rights in America. With the current national spotlight on issues of race and inequality—as well as the marking of the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, and the 60th anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott—the time is right for this series about the nation’s civil rights history to be front and center as part of an essential dialogue. America continues to struggle with the recurring crisis of race-­‐-­‐-­‐related violence; Eyes on the Prize I and II can provide perspective for a new generation and be a touchstone for citizens who lived through the decades that the films depict. Journalist and writer Al Letson hosts new introductions to each episode. “We are elated that this landmark series will once again be broadcast across the country, reaching millions of viewers—many of whom may never have seen the original airing. The series focuses on solutions to the conflicts that we face today. Eyes on the Prize shows leadership, grass roots organization and personal sacrifice as the recipe that can create lasting change. It is our hope the television programs together with our comprehensive outreach campaign will spark a national dialogue about this critical topic,” says Judi Hampton, president of Blackside, and sister of the late Henry Hampton (1940-­‐-­‐-­‐1998), executive producer of the series. The WORLD Channel presentation, made possible with support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Ford Foundation, includes Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, a new, original 30-­‐-­‐-­‐ minute special, which will lead into the premiere January 17 of Eyes on the Prize, setting the groundbreaking documentary series in the context of today. Narrated by music artist Aloe Blacc, Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now features Eyes on the Prize filmmakers, present-­‐-­‐-­‐day activists, human rights leaders, and scholars. The special revisits key historical moments and explores commonalities with current national events. “The WORLD Channel is honored to be presenting this signature series,” says Chris Hastings, Executive Producer of the WORLD Channel. “It’s a history that must be understood. With Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now, we ask questions and draw comparisons about the struggle to achieve equality today. As conflicts and challenges continue, Eyes on the Prize remains essential viewing for all Americans.” 1 As part of the initiative, WGBH Education is developing a digital resource collection supporting Eyes on the Prize and civil rights themes in history and social studies curricula, to help the civil rights movement come alive for students today. This collection will be available on PBS LearningMedia in January. “Almost three decades after first presenting Eyes on the Prize to public television audiences, WGBH is proud to make the series available to a new generation through the WORLD Channel,” says WGBH President and CEO Jon Abbott. “And we are especially pleased that teachers and students will have access to new digital resources as they learn the powerful lessons this history conveys.” Based at WGBH Boston, the national public media producer, WORLD Channel delivers the best of public television’s original documentary films and news to US audiences through local public television stations, including America ReFramed, AfroPop, POV and Local, USA. The special Eyes on the Prize presentation also will be made available to all public television stations for local broadcasts (check listings) after the WORLD premiere. EYES ON THE PRIZE I and II lmost three decades since its premiere, the groundbreaking series Eyes on the Prize I and II will return to PBS this January. Eyes on the Prize I will premiere on The WORLD Channel six consecutive Sundays – January 17, 24, 31 and February 7, 14, 21 at 9:00 p.m. (EST). Eyes on the Prize II will air eight consecutive Sundays—February 28, March 6, 13, 20, 27, and April 3, 10, 17 at 9:00 p.m. (EST). Produced by Blackside, Eyes on the Prize tells the definitive story of the Civil Rights era from the point of view of the ordinary men and women whose extraordinary actions launched a movement that changed the fabric of American life and embodied a struggle whose reverberations continue to be felt today. This multi-­‐-­‐-­‐part Academy Award nominated documentary is the winner of numerous Emmy→ Awards, a George Foster Peabody Award, an International Documentary Association Award, and a Television Critics Association Award. Hailed as “required watching” (New York Magazine) and “indispensable” (Time), Eyes on the Prize recounts the fight to end decades of discrimination and segregation. It is the story of the people— young and old, male and female, northern and southern—who, compelled by a meeting of conscience and circumstance, worked to eradicate a world where whites and blacks could not go to the same school, ride the same bus, vote in the same election, or participate equally in society. It was a world in which peaceful demonstrators were met with resistance and brutality—in short, a reality that is now nearly incomprehensible to many young Americans. 2 Through contemporary interviews and historical footage, Eyes on the Prize I and II, traces the civil rights movement from the Montgomery bus boycott to the Voting Rights Act; from early acts of individual courage through the flowering of a mass movement and its eventual split into factions. The late Julian Bond, political leader and civil rights activist, narrates. The driving force behind Eyes on the Prize and Blackside, Henry Hampton won numerous awards for this landmark series including the duPont-­‐-­‐-­‐Columbia Gold Baton Award, Peabody Awards in 1988 and 1991, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. He set out to share his vision of what he called “the remarkable human drama that was the Civil Rights Movement” through the Eyes on the Prize documentary and a book of the same title by Juan Williams. In recent years, a number of key figures who appear in the films (including the Reverend Ralph Abernathy, a leader of the Montgomery bus boycott; Coretta Scott King, wife of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., and an activist in her own right; Kwame Turé, also known as Stokely Carmichael, leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee; and George Wallace, 1960s Alabama governor who resisted integration) have died, making this record of their testimony all the more valuable. ABOUT WORLD The WORLD Channel delivers the best of public television’s nonfiction, news and documentary programming, including original content by and about diverse communities, to US audiences through local public television stations and streaming online at worldchannel.org. WORLD reached 35.8 million unique viewers 18+ last year (55% adults 18-­‐49) and over-­‐indexes in key diversity demographics. Online, the WORLD Channel expands on broadcast topics and fuels dialogue across social media, providing opportunities for broad and diverse audience interaction. WORLD is programmed by WGBH/Boston, in partnership with American Public Television and WNET/New York, and in association with PBS and National Educational Telecommunications Association. Funding for the WORLD Channel is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Ford Foundation, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Kendeda Fund. For more information about The WORLD Channel visit www.worldchannel.org/. ABOUT WGBH BOSTON WGBH Boston is America’s preeminent public broadcaster and the largest producer of PBS content for TV and the Web, including Frontline, Nova, American Experience, Masterpiece, Antiques Roadshow, Arthur, Curious George and more than a dozen other primetime, lifestyle, and children’s series. WGBH also is a major supplier of programming for public radio, and oversees Public Radio International (PRI). As a leader in educational multimedia for the classroom, WGBH supplies content to PBS LearningMedia, a national broadband service for teachers and students. WGBH also is a pioneer in technologies and services that make media accessible to those with hearing or visual impairments. WGBH has been recognized with hundreds of honors. More info at www.wgbh.org. 3 ABOUT BLACKSIDE Founded in 1968 by Henry Hampton, Blackside, Inc. went on to become one of the nation’s most acclaimed documentary film companies. Blackside producers are renowned for shaping the human stories behind the history into compelling films that inspire dialogue on the social and political issues at the core of American life. Producing more than sixty major film and media projects, Blackside has provided many emerging filmmakers with the opportunity to learn their craft. Eyes on the Prize, the company’s definitive history of the civil rights movement, won the Dupont-­‐-­‐-­‐Columbia Gold Baton, Peabody Awards, an Academy Award nomination, and numerous Emmys. Blackside has also brought many other award-­‐-­‐-­‐winning productions to public television, including The Great Depression, Malcolm X: Make It Plain, America’s War on Poverty, This Far by Faith, and I’ll Make Me A World. Eyes on the Prize is a production of Blackside, Inc. and was created and executive-­‐-­‐-­‐produced by Henry Hampton (1940-­‐-­‐-­‐ 1998). Judi Hampton now serves as president of Blackside. ABOUT THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967, is the steward of the federal government's investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of more than 1,400 locally owned and operated public television and radio stations nationwide, and is the largest single source of funding for research, technology, and program development for public radio, television and related online services. Media Contacts: Adam Segal The 2050 Group Ellen Crane WGBH [email protected] 202.422.4673 [email protected] 617.300.3904 4 BIOGRAPHIES Aloe Blacc, Narrator, Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now Aloe Blacc is a singer/songwriter whose goal is to make positive social change. He is known for using his lyrics and music videos to shed light on important issues. In 2014, he co-­‐-­‐-­‐wrote and performed Avicii's international hit "Wake Me Up" and went on to have worldwide success with his break-­‐-­‐-­‐out single, "The Man." Stephanie Frederic, Co-­‐-­‐-­‐Executive Producer, Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now Stephanie Frederic is an Emmy→-­‐-­‐-­‐nominated producer, director, and visual storyteller. She has developed and produced behind-­‐-­‐-­‐the-­‐-­‐-­‐scenes films for Universal Pictures, Warner Bros., Fox Searchlight, Disney and New Line Cinema. Frederic is a seven-­‐-­‐-­‐time winner of the National Association of Black Journalists’ distinguished Salute to Excellence Award. Judi Hampton, President, Blackside, Inc. Judi Hampton is President of the Board of Directors of Blackside Inc., which produced the Emmy Award-­‐-­‐-­‐winning TV series Eyes on the Prize. She has over 30 years of experience as a business skills coach, university professor, and public relations executive, and is president of Judi Hampton Public Relations (JHPR), providing training and coaching to a range of clients. Chris Hastings, Executive Producer of The WORLD Channel Chris Hastings was part of the original team that created and produced BET Tonight with Tavis Smiley. He brings thoughtful dedication to his current position as Executive Producer and Editorial Manager of WORLD Channel and WORLDChannel.org. Chris oversees content development, acquisition, and production for the multicast channel, and is co-­‐-­‐-­‐curator of the award-­‐-­‐-­‐winning documentary program “America Reframed.” Al Letson, Host, WORLD Presentation of Eyes on the Prize I and II Al Letson hosts Reveal Radio's Peabody Award-­‐-­‐-­‐winning public radio program and podcast showcasing investigative stories. A playwright, performance poet and actor, he hosts and is executive producer of “State of the Re:Union,” a public radio program that won a 2013 Edward R. Murrow Award in the news documentary category. 5 CREDITS Project Funders WORLD Channel’s special presentation of Eyes on the Prize and the production of Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now are made possible with generous support of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Ford Foundation. Eyes on the Prize I and II Production Eyes on the Prize is a production of Blackside Producers/Directors: Orlando Bagwell, Callie Crossley, James A. DeVinney, Judith Vecchione Associate Producers: Prudence Arndt, Llewelyn M. Smith Writers: Callie Crossley, James A. DeVinney, Steve Fayer Theme music: Bernice Johnson Reagon Narrator: Julian Bond Executive Producer: Henry Hampton Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now Production Credits A co-­‐-­‐-­‐production of WORLD Channel and FGW Productions For WORLD Channel Executive Producer Christopher Hastings Senior Editorial Advisor & Executive Producer: Judith Vecchione Producer: Monika Navarro Coordinating Producer: Nicolas Pollard Production Assistant: Emiy Abi-­‐-­‐-­‐Kheirs Contracts Manager: Ben Zalman Digital Manager: Sharon Wong Video Editor: Hannah Paul General Manager for WORLD Channel and WGBH: Liz Cheng For FGW Productions Executive Producer: Stephanie Frederic Senior Editorial Advisor & Executive Producer: Flo McAfee Producer: Stephanie Frederic, P.Frank Williams Coordinating Producer: Ronda Racha Penrice Production Assistant: Dominique Gammage Video Editors: Tshaka Armstrong and Chris Monte 6 EPISODE DESCRIPTIONS EYES ON THE PRIZE: THEN AND NOW SPECIAL PRESENTATION Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now SUNDAY, JANUARY 17, 2016 at 7:30 PM ET (repeat broadcasts through February) Eyes on the Prize: Then and Now re-­‐-­‐-­‐examines the groundbreaking series, Eyes on the Prize, from the filmmakers’ perspective, and the viewpoint of civil rights activists. Featuring interviews with Eyes filmmakers, thought leaders, current day activists, scholars, and civil rights leaders, this special will explore how far we’ve come, how far we have yet to go, the meaning and significance of the ongoing struggle, and the next steps towards equality. EYES ON THE PRIZE I All episodes air 8:00 PM ET, with repeat 9:00 PM ET of prior episode EPISODE 1 Awakenings 1954-­‐-­‐-­‐1956 SUNDAY, JANUARY 17, 2016 Individual acts of courage inspire black Southerners to fight for their rights: Mose Wright testifies against the white men who murdered young Emmett Till, and Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat to a white man in Montgomery, Alabama. EPISODE 2 Fighting Back 1957–1962 SUNDAY, JANUARY 24, 2016 States’ rights, loyalists, and federal authorities collide in the 1957 battle to integrate Little Rock’s Central High School, and again in James Meredith’s 1962 challenge to segregation at the University of Mississippi. Both times, a Southern governor squares off with a US president, violence erupts—and integration is carried out EPISODE 3 Ain’t Scared of Your Jails 1960–1961 SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 2016 Black college students take a leadership role in the Civil Rights movement as lunch counter sit-­‐-­‐-­‐ins spread across the South. Freedom Riders also try to desegregate interstate buses, but they are brutally attacked as they travel. 7 EPISODE 4 No Easy Walk 1961–1963 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2016 The Civil Rights Movement discovers the power of mass demonstrations as the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. emerges as its most visible leader. Some demonstrations succeed; others fail. But the triumphant march on Washington, D.C., under King’s leadership shows a mounting national support for civil rights. President John F. Kennedy proposes the Civil Rights Act. EPISODE 5 Mississippi: Is This America? 1963–1964 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2016 Mississippi’s grass-­‐-­‐-­‐roots Civil Rights Movement becomes an American concern when college students travel south to help register black voters and three of them are murdered. The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party challenges the regular Mississippi delegation at the Democratic Convention in Atlantic City. EPISODE 6 Bridge to Freedom 1965 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2016 A decade of lessons is applied in the climactic and bloody march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. A major victory is won when the federal Voting Rights Bill passes, but Civil Rights leaders know they have new challenges ahead. EYES ON THE PRIZE II All episodes air 8:00 PM ET, with repeat 9:00 PM ET of prior episode EPISODE 1 The Time Has Come 1964-­‐-­‐-­‐1966 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016 After a decade-­‐-­‐-­‐long cry for justice, a new sound is heard in the civil rights movement: the insistent call for power. Malcolm X takes an eloquent nationalism to urban streets as a younger generation of black leaders listens. In the South, Stokely Carmichael and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) move from "Freedom Now!" to "BlackPower!" as the fabric of the traditional movement changes. 8 EPISODE 2 Two Societies 1965-­‐-­‐-­‐1968 SUNDAY, MARCH 6, 2016 Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) come north to help Chicago's civil rights leaders in their nonviolent struggle against segregated housing. Their efforts pit them against Chicago's powerful mayor, Richard Daley. When a series of marches through all-­‐-­‐-­‐white neighborhoods draws violence, King and Daley negotiate with mixed results. In Detroit, a police raid in a black neighborhood sparks an urban uprising that lasts five days, leaving 43 people dead. The Kerner Commission finds that America is becoming "two societies, one black, one white, separate and unequal." President Lyndon Johnson, who appointed the commission, ignores the report. EPISODE 3 Power! 1966-­‐-­‐-­‐1968 SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016 The call for Black Power takes various forms across communities in black America. In Cleveland, Carl Stokes wins election as the first black mayor of a major American city. The Black Panther Party, armed with law books, breakfast programs, and guns, is born in Oakland. Substandard teaching practices prompt parents to gain educational control of a Brooklyn school district but then lead them to a showdown with New York City's teachers' union. EPISODE 4 The Promised Land 1967-­‐-­‐-­‐1968 SUNDAY, MARCH 20, 2016 Martin Luther King, Jr. stakes out new ground for himself and the rapidly fragmenting civil rights movement. One year before his death, he publicly opposes the war in Vietnam. His Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) embarks on an ambitious Poor People's Campaign. In the midst of political organizing, King detours to support striking sanitation workers in Memphis, where he is assassinated. King's death and the failure of his final campaign mark the end of a major stream of the movement. EPISODE 5 Ain’t Gonna Shuffle No More 1964-­‐-­‐-­‐1972 SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 2016 A call to pride and a renewed push for unity galvanize black America. World heavyweight champion Cassius Clay challenges America to accept him as Muhammad Ali, a minister of Islam who refuses to fight in Vietnam. Students at Howard University in Washington, D.C., fight to bring the growing black consciousness movement and their African heritage inside the walls of this prominent black institution. Black elected officials and community activists organize the National Black Political Convention in Gary, Indiana, in an attempt to create a unified black response to growing repression against the movement. 9 EPISODE 6 A Nation of Law? 1968-­‐-­‐-­‐1971 SUNDAY, ARPRIL 3, 2016 Black activism is increasingly met with a sometimes violent and unethical response from local and federal law enforcement agencies. In Chicago, two Black Panther Party leaders are killed in a pre-­‐-­‐-­‐dawn raid by police acting on information supplied by an FBI informant. In the wake of President Nixon's call to "law and order," stepped-­‐-­‐-­‐up arrests push the already poor conditions at New York's Attica State Prison to the limit. A five-­‐-­‐-­‐day inmate takeover calling the public's attention to the conditions leaves 43 men dead: four killed by inmates, 39 by police. EPISODE 7 The Keys to the Kingdom 1974-­‐-­‐-­‐1980 SUNDAY, ARPRIL 10, 2016 In the 1970s, antidiscrimination legal rights gained in past decades by the civil rights movement are put to the test. In Boston, some whites violently resist a federal court school desegregation order. Atlanta's first black mayor, Maynard Jackson, proves that affirmative action can work, but the Bakke Supreme Court case challenges that policy. EPISODE 8 Back to the Movement 1979-­‐-­‐-­‐mid 80s SUNDAY, ARPRIL 17, 2016 Power and powerlessness. Miami's black community -­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐ pummeled by urban renewal, a lack of jobs, and police harassment -­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐ explodes in rioting. But in Chicago, an unprecedented grassroots movement triumphs. Frustrated by decades of unfulfilled promises made by the city's Democratic political machine, reformers install Harold Washington as Chicago's first black mayor. Media Contacts: Adam Segal The 2050 Group [email protected] 202.422.4673 Ellen Crane WGBH [email protected] 617.300.3904 10