Connie Rice, Christopher Thornberg, Ronald C. White and David Frankham Will be In Studio for Interviews 

Los Angeles, CA - November 12, 2012 - This week, the award-winning series SoCal Connected (www.socalconnected.org), focuses on the housing market boom and how Southern Californian residents looking to buy or sell will be affected by changes in the economic landscape.  Correspondent John Ridley takes a closer look at football season and whether or not high schoolers are getting the protection they need to prevent head injuries in this contact-heavy sport.  And Connie Rice discusses her decades-long battle to end gang violence in Los Angeles.

This week's episode highlights include:   

MONDAY, November 12

Due in part to record low interest rates and fewer foreclosed properties, the housing market in the Southland is sizzling again.  Over the last year, housing prices in LA County alone rose 9.7 percent, but as SoCal Connected correspondent Laurel Erickson questions, is now the best time to buy?  And how does the typical family compete with "flippers" and other investors who are able to purchase homes above asking price with cash?

And, special contributor Madeleine Brand interviews Christopher Thornberg, Founding Partner of Beacon Economics, LLC, widely considered to be one of California's leading economists, to provide additional insight on the future of Southern California's economy. 

TUESDAY, November 13

As the ultimate contact sport, it's not surprising that football accounts for two out of every three sports-related concussions in high school, but what is surprising is that most of them occur during practice. Correspondent John Ridley reports on how one Southern California high school is working on lowering the risk with gel caps and computerized tests.

Plus, in light of Steven Spielberg's highly anticipated Lincoln, Madeleine Brand interviews historian and author Ronald C. White about America's enduring fascination with Abraham Lincoln.

WEDNESDAY, November 14

On Election Day, Californian voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 36, amending the state's Three Strikes law mandating that a third strike, which carries a life sentence, be a serious or violent crime.  SoCal Connected correspondent Jennifer London dissects the reformation and how it will affect those currently serving harsh sentences as well as future convicts.

Plus, Madeleine Brand speaks with Connie Rice on her radical approach to ending gang violence as well as her new memoir, Power Concedes Nothing: One Woman's Quest for Social Justice in America, from the Courtroom to the Kill Zones.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15

Worth billions of dollars, the billboard industry has found its home in Los Angeles, the billboard capital of the nation.  Correspondent Vince Gonzales provides viewers an important update on last season's "Billboard Confidential" news story, looking into whether or not city officials are willing or able to enforce their own ban of billboards, digital signs and so-called "super graphics."

Plus, Madeleine Brand interviews David Frankham, Director of the new HBO series Witness: Juarez, a four-part documentary series following combat photographers into conflict zones in Mexico, Libya, South Sudan and Brazil.

ABOUT SOCAL CONNECTED

SoCal Connected, winner of the Peabody and duPont-Columbia 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 7 p.m. with encores at 10:30 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; The California Endowment; and by UCLA. 

ABOUT KCET

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.

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