KCET'S SoCal Connected Wins More Los Angeles Press Club Awards Than Any Other TV Station in Southern California, Including Best Talk and Public Affairs Show for Second Year in a Row

Los Angeles - June 27, 2011 - KCET's signature weekly news program, SoCal Connected, won a total of 7 Los Angeles Press Clubs awards at the 53rd Annual Southern California Journalism Awards Sunday night, more than any other television station in Southern California. The Los Angeles Press Club Awards honor high-caliber journalism in traditional and emerging media formats, with winners being selected by press clubs from across the country. The Emmy® and Peabody-winning SoCal Connected also received an award for best Talk and Public Affairs show for the second year in a row, with first place in three categories, and second place and Honorable Mentions in four others. The Los Angeles Press Club Awards are judged by press clubs in Arizona, Cleveland, Denver, East Bay, Houston, Kansas, New Orleans, Missouri, Ohio, Syracuse and Wisconsin. SoCal Connected earned high praise from the judging panel for producing timely informational stories with insight and emotion. The complete list of KCET's SoCal Connected wins and judges' comments, including links to segments, is below.

INVESTIGATIVE

First Place - KCET
SoCal Connected: "Protected or Neglected" awarded to Bret Marcus, Justine Schmidt, Karen Foshay, Vince Gonzolas, Lata Pandya, Alberto Arce. Judges praised: "Really interesting stories focusing on a big problem in the region: OSHA not keeping workers safe. This investigation had all the elements: good pacing, foreshadowing, well-told stories, victims, a "bad guy," confrontation, excellent editing and storytelling."

DOCUMENTARIES

Honorable Mention - KCET
SoCal Connected: "Protected or Neglected" award to the staff of SoCal Connected.

TALK/PUBLIC AFFAIRS

First Place - KCET
SoCal Connected: "The Price of Power/Truck to the Future/My DWP Bill" awarded to the staff of SoCal Connected. Judges praised: "All of the stories were well done, informative and the entire show moved very well. "Track to the Future" was our favorite story and we loved how well-researched the "My DWP Bill" story was."

Second Place - KCET
SoCal Connected: "Sacramento Dreamin/Climate Recall/Between the Line" awarded to the staff of SoCal Connected.

FEATURE

Second Place - KCET
SoCal Connected: "Putting on Ayers" awarded to Bret Marcus, Justine Schmidt, Rick Wilkinson, Steve Lopez and Alberto Arce. Judges commented: "This musical piece was a fascinating look at a man who has truly turned his life around. The story focused on Ayers, not the "superstars" who wanted to work with him. A well edited piece, it focused not only on the man's life, but on the music he makes."

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS OR FEATURE

First Place - KCET
SoCal Connected: "Celluloid Ceiling" awarded to Bret Marcus, Justine Schmidt, Rick Wilkinson, Judy Muller, Michael Bloecher, and Anne Lilburn. Judges praised: "Judy Muller and her team look at accomplished women directors still needing to fight to get any directing work at all in Hollywood. There's also a good look at what makes a good director, and some sadly humorous quotes about female directors being "too emotional" for many producers when quite a few prominent male directors are famously unhinged on the set."

Honorable Mention - KCET
SoCal Connected: "Runaway Production" awarded to Bret Marcus, Justine Schmidt, Rick Wilkinson, David Lazarus, Alberto Arce, and Anne Lilburn.

About SoCal Connected

SoCal Connected, KCET's hard-hitting weekly news program, covers the economy, healthcare, the environment and local issues. Winner of the Peabody Award, 11 Emmys, 15 Golden Mikes, including Best News Public Affairs Show, 25 Los Angeles Press Club awards for journalism, recipient of the Edward R. Murrow Award for Best News Documentary, and Los Angeles Magazine's "Best New Local TV Program" of 2009, SoCal Connected airs Wednesday (8:30 - 9:00 p.m.), Fridays (8:30 - 9:00 p.m.), Saturdays (6:00 - 6:30 p.m.), and Sundays (6:30 - 7:00 p.m.) exclusively on KCET. For more information, to view episodes online or to post comments, please visit www.kcet.org/socal.

SoCal Connected is made possible through the generous support of The Ahmanson Foundation, serving the Los Angeles community since 1952; The California Endowment; Jim and Anne Rothenberg; Maddocks-Brown Foundation; The Elizabeth Hofert-Dailey Trust; The John Randolph Haynes & Dora Haynes Foundation; The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, UCLA and U.S. Bank.

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 currently produces the Emmy®, duPont-Columbia and Peabody Award-winning SoCal Connected, a hard-hitting prime-time weekly television news program that examines the issues and people of Southern California. Throughout its more than 40-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. More than half of the funds raised to support KCET's operating budget come from individual support. For additional information about KCET productions, Web-exclusive content, programming schedules and community events, please visit kcet.org.

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