The Award-Winning Series will Also Delve into Local Issues Influencing the Election including Economic Disparities and "Dirty" Campaigns

Los Angeles, CA - November 05, 2012 - SoCal Connected (www.socalconnected.org), continues its compelling coverage of the most important issues affecting Southern Californian voters with insightful political discussions both before and after the election hosted by special contributor Madeleine Brand and anchor Val Zavala, respectively.  Vince Gonzales also reports on an exclusive, hard-hitting SoCal Connected investigation of one of Huntington Park's officials whose connections and influence are under fire with the city and its residents.

This week's episode highlights include:   

MONDAY, November 5

Correspondent Vince Gonzales offers a tale of how the stark differences in the economies of two Southern Californian cities may affect the votes of their residents.  In San Bernardino, bankruptcies and joblessness are on the minds of every early voter interviewed in this once prosperous suburb, while in Long Beach, some residents feel the tide is beginning to turn, which reported some of the highest job growth in the country, according to the October federal jobs report.

Plus, special contributor Madeleine Brand, accompanied by leading political analyst Dr. Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, and Bob Stern, President of the Center for Governmental Studies, dissect the local and national candidates and how this election will affect Americans and Californians alike.

TUESDAY, November 6

Election Day - Pre-empted by BBC

WEDNESDAY, November 7

SoCal Connected correspondent Judy Muller takes viewers through the "time-honored tradition" of mud-slinging. She offers notable examples of ugly campaigns dating back to the early1800's and why very little has changed in "dirty" politics.

And, Patt Morrison of KPCC and the Los Angeles Times, SoCal Connected contributor, screenwriter and author John Ridley and Brian Doherty, Senior Editor at Reason magazine, along with SoCal Connected anchor Val Zavala, analyze the most pressing and controversial outcomes of the election and what the new measures and incumbents will mean for SoCal residents.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8

Correspondent Vince Gonzales has an exclusive investigation into charges of overcharging and conflict of interest by a key city official in Huntington, Calif., a scrappy city bordering scandal plagued Vernon, Bell and Cudahy.

And Madeleine Brand interviews legendary author, Tom Wolfe (The Right Stuff and The Bonfire of the Vanities) about his new novel Back to Blood, a panoramic story of the new America.

SoCal Connected airs nightly on Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. with an encore episode at 10:30 p.m.  Bret Marcus is executive producer and Rebecca Haggerty is co-executive producer.

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 MaddocksBrown 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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