Here, you can see the brief moments that precede a Tennessee Insider taping.  Our Director, Sergio Plecas, circles the table to make one last check before heading to Production Control; Our panelists, anxiously wait for the countdown to begin and the cameras to roll.  

Keep an eye out right here, we hope to continue offering a glimpse -- of what's happening behind the scenes, on sets or out in the field.

 

 

Last night's live pledge event was a lot of fun.  We watched the documentary "The Appalachians" and asked you to call in with your pledge of support and also to let us know where you were calling from.  We proposed a friendly competition between the Tennessee folks and the Georgia folks.  As I mentioned last night, I was born and raised in Georgia, so it pains me to reveal the results of last night's challenge.  Nine pledges were identified as coming from Tennessee and four of them were from our viewers in Georgia. 

But, fear not, Georgia viewers, you've still got plenty of opportunities to pledge your support.  In the next few days alone, you'll get a chance to enjoy some amazing music specials featuring Victor Borge, Chet Atkins, Elvis Presley, The Canadian Tenors, James Taylor & Carole King, Stevie Ray Vaughn and much more. 

But remember, when it comes to television that both educates and entertains, there's no competition.  WTCI enriches all of our lives.  We truly appreciate your support.

We'll be updating this blog more regularly, and we'd like to know what you'd like to see in this space.  Our posts will vary in length and tone, but we'd like to be able to keep you in the loop about what we're up to and what we're thinking about.  So, expect more posts in the coming weeks, and let us know what you think by commenting.  And if you're one of the millions using Twitter and Facebook, be sure to "follow" us at http://twitter.com/wtci and "like" us at http://tinyurl.com/facebookwtci

WTCI-TV was recognized as the outstanding nonprofit agency of the year by The Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce at the Small Business Awards Luncheon, an annual event celebrating small business and entrepreneurial excellence in Chattanooga. WTCI has offered quality, award-winning programming to the community for 40 years, reaching 850,000 people in a four-state, 35-county viewing area. With a mission to educate, engage and inspire a lifetime of learning and exploration, WTCI airs 60 hours of children's programming each week along with popular local and national programs that offer balanced public affairs information, documentaries and science programming. WTCI also demonstrates its commitment to the arts through programs dedicated to music festivals, opera and dramatic performances and supports local education by providing free literacy workshops, distributing over 10,000 books to children, offering an annual writing contest and working with area schools on book drives and PBS character visits.

President Obama's strategy for the way forward in Afghanistan will be revealed tonight in an address to the nation at 8pm.  WTCI will carry the President's speech live and the NewsHour will provide the kind of analysis you've come to depend on from PBS. 

Friday at 8pm, Afghanistan and the President's plan will be among the topics discussed by Gwen Ifill and her guests on Washington Week.  And stay tuned at 8:30 Friday night for Tennessee Insider, our local political affairs program hosted by Greg Glover.  We'll bring you local perspectives on the war and we'd love to hear what you think of the President's plans.

PBS's coverage of the war in Afghanistan also extends to the web.  Frontline's Obama's War is now available to view online.  It looks at counterinsurgency strategy, the war in relation to Pakistan, and President Obama's options for dealing with the 8-year-old war.

Now on PBS not only reports from the front lines with US Marines, but examines the health care our wounded veterans receive when they arrive home.

And Bill Moyers recently explored parallels between Afghanistan and Vietnam, with the personal perspective he gained working with President Lyndon Johnson over forty years ago.

Depend on WTCI to bring you coverage from all angles, like no one else can.

                      

At their annual luncheon on Wednesday, The Chattanooga History Center honored Fletcher Bright and the Dismembered Tennesseans with the 4th Annual Chattanooga History Makers Award. Once again, WTCI was honored to help sponsor the event and to produce a short film about the group's contributions to our area and to our nation's musical heritage. Of course, not everyone can attend an event like this, so we're pleased to be able to broadcast the film this weekend, exclusively on WTCI. Tune in Saturday, Nov. 21st at 8:48pm or Sunday, Nov. 22nd with back-to-back broadcasts at 1:00pm and 1:15PM. The film received a great reception at Wednesday's luncheon, so be sure to tune in and tell a friend.

Tuesday at 10pm, Frontline investigates the death of Neda Agha Soltan, a young woman killed on the streets of Tehran who became a symbol of the opposition to the controversial re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Who was she? What happened? What lies ahead for the people of Iran?

Sesame Street, whose opening theme song and cast of characters are familiar to generations of children, is turning 40. The show premiered on November 10, 1969. A fitting tribute to the show's mission is a recent study that found teens who watched Sesame Street in pre-school had higher grades than those who did not. And the show is still going strong as it enters it's 40th year. Last season, Sesame Street averaged more than 5 million viewers each week. WTCI is proud to be the home of Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster and the whole fuzzy gang here in the Tennessee Valley. Congratulations Sesame Street and Happy 40th!

I ate dinner with family earlier this week at a restaurant in downtown Chattanooga.  I'd been working that day and I had on a WTCI shirt that we in the production crew often wear on shoots.  A server at the restaurant saw the logo and asked me if I worked for WTCI.  I told him that I did and his face lit up. 

"I love PBS," he said.  "When we were kids we had cable, but we always ended up watching PBS."  He went on, clearly passionate about what public television means to him.  And then he said something I wasn't expecting..."It just wouldn't be America without PBS". 

Every once in a while, I'm reminded that what we do for a living affects people's lives deeply, and it's gratifying to know that.  It's easy to get lost in the details of production, but your support, whether it's a kind word at a restaurant, or a pledge of financial support, helps remind us why we're here.  There's a reason why PBS has been voted the most trusted organization in the country for six years straight (Roper Public Opinion Poll).  We work to earn your trust, and we appreciate it.

It's an underdog story Charles Dickens himself would love.  Amid all the nominations for cable powerhouse HBO and other networks, PBS's Little Dorrit, took home more Emmy statues than any other program on television.  The Masterpiece Classic series took home statues for directing, writing, cinematography, art direction, casting, costumes, and finally best miniseries. 

We're proud to bring you quality programming like Little Dorrit and we hope you'll continue to support WTCI so that we're able to provide even more award-winning television in the future.

Health care reform is on everyone's minds these days as congress debates the pros and cons of changes to our current system.  We hope you'll join us Thursday night at 9pm for a 90-minute special on the subject. This collaboration of NOW, Tavis Smiley, and the Nightly Business Report will include the latest news and insight about the political, cultural, and economic issues at stake.

PBS Special on Health Care Reform airs Thursday, Sept. 24th at 9pm on WTCI.
http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/health-care-reform/index.html

Tune in to WTCI this Thursday, Sept. 10th at 8pm to see Jim Brickman live in the WTCI studio.  He'll be presenting his new special, Beautiful World, featuring guest stars Jon Secada, Orla Fallon, American Idol's Melinda Doolittle, and Mark Masri.  Brickman returns to Chattanooga on November 29th and we've got tickets, so be sure to watch and pledge your support to WTCI. 

Nearly twenty years after the death of Muppet creator Jim Henson, The Jim Henson Company continues his legacy of great educational television for children.  You may already watch Sid the Science Kid on WTCI with your kids, and we're happy to let you know about a new series called Dinosaur Train.

Young children will love the colorful characters & original songs that encourage them to explore natural history and basic science concepts.  There's great additional information about the program here on the PBS Parents site.

WTCI airs Dinosaur Train weekdays at 9:30am.  Join us!

 

In case you missed it, Sesame Street earned the Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award for 40 years of great children's programming. You'll also get a rare chance to see the performers that bring some of your favorite characters to life.

It's not every day that you get to sit down with someone like Ken Burns - and just chat. It's not often that someone asks what you did for the afternoon and you get to respond, "Oh, I hung out with Ken Burns." So imagine how incredibly excited I was to find out that the season finale interview for The A List would be none other than - yes, you guessed it - Ken Burns. To say that he is an affable and passionate soul would be a huge understatement. He is as friendly as he is focused on his work, and he was as accessible to me and our crew as he makes his subject matter to his viewers. In the half hour that we spent together, Ken Burns and I discussed everything from his family and first experiences behind a camera, to the materpieces he's produced over time and the ones he has yet to create. I dare say it may be one of the best interviews yet! But don't take my word for it - tune in to the season finale of The A List on Thursday, May 21, at 8:30 p.m. and see for yourself.