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KCETLink Celebrates Black History Month With Robust Programming Lineup

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Emily Merkley

747.201.5298, emerkley@kcet.org

KCETLink Celebrates Black History Month  

With Robust Programming Lineup

Inspiring Documentaries & Special Episodes of KCET Original Series ­­­ARTBOUND, SOCAL CONNECTED and BORDER BLASTER Address Key Black Rights Movements, History and Social Issues  

BURBANK, Calif. - February 2, 2016 - KCET, the nation's largest independent public television station, and national nonprofit satellite network Link TV (DirecTV channel 375 and DISH Network channel 9410) will celebrate Black History Month with a series of programs that will give viewers a unique window into the history, as well as the social and civil rights issues defining the black experience in the U.S. and beyond. Black History Month programs includes programming chronicling the life of civil rights leader Thurgood Marshall; the fascinating life of BET founder Sheila Johnson; attorney and activist Beatrice Mtetwa's courageous civil rights work in Africa; an untold perspective on the historical struggle to abolish slavery in THE GHOSTS OF AMISTAD; and the current oppression against Cameroon's underground LGBTQ community in BORN THIS WAY.

In addition, the flagship series ARTBOUND, BORDER BLASTER, and SOCAL CONNECTED will present special multi-platform segments that delve into cultural issues impacting the black community. 

During the month of February, the KCET and Link TV programming offerings for Black History Month are as follows:

BUILDING THE DREAM - Wed., Feb. 10 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Link TV and KCET

This important documentary recounts the journey of an idea for a national monument honoring Martin Luther King Jr., taking viewers through the process that began with a group of friends talking around a kitchen table all the way to the creation of this permanent symbol to ensure Reverend King's dream of equality will remain alive for future generations. 

MR. CIVIL RIGHTS: Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP - Wed., Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. PT on KCET

Rare archival film footage and revealing interviews explore the extraordinary life and work of Thurgood Marshall in the years leading up to the landmark Brown v. Board of Education ruling.  The documentary spans Marshall's life including his upbringing in Baltimore and his education at Howard University Law School as well as his status as a rising star within the NAACP. The film also delves into his relationship with mentor Charles H. Houston and his high-profile segregation cases involving voting, transportation, housing, labor and the military. This compelling biography unfolds through interviews with a variety of civil rights activists including Vernon Jordan.  

BEATRICE MTETWA AND THE RULE OF LAW - Wed., Feb. 17 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Link TV and KCET

In spite of beatings by police officers, Beatrice Mtetwa has courageously defended in court those jailed by the Mugabe government - activists, journalists, opposition candidates, farmers who had their land confiscated, and ordinary citizens who had the courage to speak up. Through interviews with Mtetwa and some of her defendants, the film tells the story of what happens when rulers place themselves above the law and why defense of the 'rule of law' is a crucial step in the building of civil society.

GHOSTS OF AMISTAD: In The Footsteps of Rebels - Fri., Feb. 19, at 9 p.m. PT on KCETAcademics and historians travel to Sierra Leone in May of 2013 to retrace the path of the 53 Africans who rebelled against their captors and seized the slave schooner Amistad in 1839, leading to a watershed U.S. Supreme Court decision. With an intention to recover the lost history of the Amistad insurrection, the filmmakers visit the home villages of the people who seized the original ship resulting in a seldom-voiced perspective in the historical struggle against slavery.

BORN THIS WAY - Wed., Feb. 24, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Link TV and KCET

Presenting a shocking portrait of persecution against the underground gay and lesbian community in the west African region of Cameroon, the documentary follows two young subjects, Cedric and Gertrude, as they move between a secret, supportive LGBT community and an oppressive outside culture that, though intensely homophobic, is in transition toward greater acceptance.

AN EVENING WITH SHEILA JOHNSON - Fri., Feb. 26, at 9 p.m. PT on KCET

Veteran "PBS NewsHour" journalist Gwen Ifill explores the life and career of one of the nation's most successful black businesswomen, Sheila Johnson. Co-founding Black Entertainment Television (BET) in 1980, Johnson poured her efforts into BET serving as Executive Vice President of Community Affairs, and spearheading programming such as "Teen Summit." After selling BET in 2002 to Viacom for $2.4 billion, Johnson went on to found Salamander Hotels & Resorts, a hospitality firm that now owns and manages six luxury resorts.

Additional original KCET and Link TV programming supporting the Black History Month lineup are as follows:

ARTBOUND - Tuesdays at 8 p.m. PT on KCET in Southern California and Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Link TV nationwide.

In honor of Black History Month, KCETLink's acclaimed ARTBOUND series will present episodes dedicated to Black History Month. Kicking off with "The Mundane Afro-futurist Manifesto" on Tues, Feb. 2 on KCET, the program delves into a new theory of the Black aesthetic in the 21st century and examines the tension between conventional channels of media distribution and the black imagination.  Another special episode closes the month on Tues., Feb. 23 on KCET with the episode "Art and Protest" featuring black artist Noah Purifoy that explores art created through social upheaval.

SOCAL CONNECTED - Wed., Feb. 3, at 8 p.m. on KCET

KCET's award-winning flagship news magazine SOCAL CONNECTED will go behind the scenes and explore LA's Black Lives Matter activist movement, as well as look at a dangerous county in California as well as a cop who polices skid row.

BORDER BLASTER - Tue., Feb. 23, at 9:30 p.m. on KCET and Mondays at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Link TV nationwide

Border Blaster, the global music video series will create a thirty-minute African music video special.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Starting Wed., Feb 3 visit KCET on Facebook and Twitter where there will be an exclusive video series,THE CONTRIBUTORS. This video series will highlight positive contributions of African-American individuals, organizations, and movements by changing attitudes and promoting greater understanding or providing mentorship and leadership to the community in an impactful way. New videos will be available several times a week.

ABOUT KCETLINK MEDIA GROUP

KCETLink Media Group, formed by the merger between KCET and Link Media, is a national independent, nonprofit, digital and broadcast network that provides high-quality, culturally diverse programming designed to engage the public in innovative, entertaining and transformative ways. With a commitment to independent perspectives, smart global entertainment, local communities, and opportunities for engagement and social action, KCETLink depicts people and the world through a lens unavailable elsewhere in U.S. media. A viewer-supported 501(c)(3) organization, KCETLink content is distributed nationally via satellite on Link TV - DIRECTV channel 375 and DISH Network channel 9410 - and on KCET in Southern and Central California via broadcast and cable, as well as through various digital delivery systems. For additional information about KCET and Link TV productions, web-exclusive content, programming schedules and community events, please visit kcet.org or linktv.org. Select original programming from KCET and Link TV is also available for streaming on Hulu and Roku platforms.

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