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KCET's Award-Winning Weekly Series 'SOCAL CONNECTED' Navigates the Critical Issues Surrounding the Upcoming Revitalization of the Los Angeles River

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BURBANK, CA June 12, 2014 -

SOCAL

CONNECTED

, KCET's Emmy® and Peabody® Award winning series sends reporter

Cara Santa Maria on a kayak trip down the Los Angeles River in next week's

episode. Currently, the waterway has big, exciting changes in store as nearly

$1 billion in federal and city funds are slated to revitalize an 11-mile

section between Glendale and downtown L.A. The dreams of river advocates, who have

been working for years to turn concrete into greenery, will be realized. The

long-established working-class neighbors of Elysian Valley, however, are

concerned about rising property values and over-development. Santa Maria

navigates through the various issues while rowing through a scenic stretch of

the river now open to the public for the summer season. SOCAL CONNECTED

collaborated with KCET Departures, which has been covering the L.A. River on

KCET.org for seven years. Go to kcet.org/lariver to read more. The story airs

on Wednesday, June 18, 2014 at 8 p.m.

This week's SOCAL CONNECTED also features:

Diving for Opportunity:  A prison rehab program is training a select

group of convicts to become deep-water divers. Reporter Michael Owku looks at

the rigorous training they go through and the high hopes they have toward

securing well-paying, albeit dangerous, jobs once they are released.

A Gallery on the Wind: Anchor Val Zavala heads

to the beach for the Otis College of Art and Design Kite Festival in Santa

Monica. Artists who have turned kite design into an art form launch their

creations to the delight of the crowd. After 10 years, Zavala hopes to meet

again with Tyrus Wong, a famed artist and kite maker. 

The Chicano Pop Art of "Germs": Witness the whimsical works of Jaime "Germs" Zacarias

in this segment from Artbound that explores the painter's wide-ranging inspirations. His colorful

pop-surrealist paintings incorporate the visual landscapes of his

youth in South L.A.  Germs' works

have also caught the eye of collectors including comedian and Chicano arts

patron Cheech Marin.

Broadcast Premiere Date:  Wednesday, June

18 at 8 p.m.

Repeated: Friday,

June 20 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, June 22 at 6:30 p.m.

SOCAL CONNECTED is anchored by 15-time

Emmy®-Award winner, Val Zavala. Contributors include science journalist

Cara Santa Maria, reporters Derrick Shore and Jennifer Sabih, documentary

filmmaker Nic Cha Kim and writer Nick Hardcastle.

The television broadcast executive producer for

SOCAL

CONNECTED

is Val Zavala; digital executive producer is Zach Behrens;

and Linda Burns is senior producer.

ABOUT SOCAL CONNECTED

SOCAL CONNECTED, winner of a Peabody® and two

duPont Awards, 20 Emmy® Awards, 24 Golden Mikes, 47 LA Press Club Awards, two

Gracie Awards, and four regional and one national Edward R. Murrow Awards,

including Best News Documentary and Los Angeles Magazine's "Best New Local

TV Program" of 2009, airs 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, Chapman University and the MaddocksBrown Foundation.

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. Throughout its

50-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. KCET is a service of KCETLink.

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