KCET'S AWARD WINNING 'SO CAL CONNECTED' TO FOCUS ON POLITICS AND MONEY FOR NEW SEASON DEBUT ON OCTOBER 29, 7 PM
Val Zavala anchors 5th Season; Madeleine Brand joins as special contributor
Los Angeles, CA - October 26, 2012 - As Southern California voters count down to the November 6 election, KCET's award-winning news magazine, SoCal Connected ([ http://www.socalconnected.org ]www.socalconnected.org), anchored by Val Zavala with special contributor Madeleine Brand, takes a look at the many issues impacting their decisions, from ballot propositions and PACs to the economy and jobs. The all-new season begins nightly on Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. with an encore episode at 10:30 p.m. every day.
"This week we'll focus on all the lightning rod issues of the presidential and state proposition campaigns and provide a better understanding of how our lives will change depending on which party occupies the Oval Office," said Bret Marcus, executive producer for SoCal Connected and KCET's Chief Content Officer.
Additionally, every night features a special guest in the studio to speak with SoCal Connected's Madeleine Brand. Over the next two weeks, the line-up includes: Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez; The Onion editor Brian Janosch; Director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC Dan Schnur, Novelist, Screenwriter and Journalist John Ridley; Los Angeles Times columnist and former KPCC host Patt Morrison; Senior Fellow, School of Policy, Planning and Development at USC and nationally renowned political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, President of the Center for Governmental Studies Bob Stern and Founder and executive director of Zócalo Public Square in Los Angeles Gregory Rodriguez; Variety's deputy editor Ted Johnson; and Los Angeles Times business columnist, blogger for CBS MoneyWatch and Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine editor Kathy M. Kristof.
First week's episode highlights include:
MONDAY, OCTOBER 29
Correspondent Vince Gonzales examines Prop 30 and what it may or may not do for community colleges. In studio guest: Writer and deputy managing editor Brian Janosch of the satirical on-line magazine "The Onion" discusses their new encyclopedia "The Onion Book of Known Knowledge."
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 30
Correspondent Vince Gonzales examines how national Super Pac money has changed the face of a local congressional race. Also, the Shuttle Endeavor has come home to LA - will it inspire a rebirth of the aerospace industry in Southern California? In studio guest: Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 31
Correspondent Jennifer London looks at Proposition 37 and the controversy over GMO's. In studio guest: Columnist Ted Johnson, who covers politics and entertainment for Variety, discusses political ads.
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1
Correspondent Brian Rooney takes a look at the new "APP Economy" where the un and underemployed can find mini jobs in the palm of their hand as long as they have a smart phone and the right app. In studio guest: LA Times business columnist Kathy Kristof discusses the new economy.
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 [ http://www.kcet.org/socalconnected ]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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