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Link TV Premieres 'The Challengers' A New Series In Partnership with The Commonwealth Club Spotlighting Uncommon People Providing Unique Perspectives

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New Link TV Series Features Interviews With Notable Slate of Influencers Including Award-Winning Journalist Katy Tur, Nobel Peace Prize Winner Muhammad Yunus, Political Commentators Van Jones and Charles Sykes; Additional Link TV Pledge Specials Feature Presidential Candidate/Author Hillary Clinton and Filmmaker Sebastian Junger

Images (left to right) of Van Jones, Hillary Clinton, and Ai WeiWei Courtesy of Link TV
Images (left to right) of Van Jones, Hillary Clinton, and Ai WeiWei Courtesy of Link TV

Burbank, Calif. - Nov. 16, 2017 - Link TV, a national independent public satellite television network, announced today a special new lineup of pledge programming called THE CHALLENGERS, a series of dynamic speeches and interviews by uncommon people whose voices are challenging perspectives and offering unique insights into global issues. The series is a result of a partnership with San Francisco-based The Commonwealth Club of California. Notable on-air guests making their Link TV network premieres in this debut season of THE CHALLENGERS include NBC and MSNBC correspondent Katy Tur, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, civil rights activist Van Jones, best-selling author and conservative radio host Charles Sykes, as well as acclaimed artist Ai Weiwei.

In addition to THE CHALLENGERS series, Link TV will also air three new specials, one of which features a post-election interview with Presidential candidate/former Secretary of State and author Hillary Clinton.

Link TV pledge specials will air starting Nov. 28 thru December 31 on DIRECTV channel 375 and DISH Network channel 9410. 

The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. Each year, they bring more than 450 events on topics ranging across politics, culture, society and the economy to more than 22,000 members and the public.

Link TV, a national channel that connects the viewing public to the world, is an independent viewer-supported 501(c)(3) organization, funded by contributions from generous individuals and grants from foundations. Audiences can discover Link TV's 24/7 mix of documentaries, global news and diverse cultural programs live on satellite, as well as streaming on-demand at LinkTV.org, Apple TV and on the Link TV Roku channel.

Link TV's upcoming pledge special lineup featuring network premiere specials include the following (*schedule subject to change):

Unbelievable: The Trump Campaign and Katy Tur

Premieres - Nov. 28 at 7p.m. ET/PT

Over the course of 16 months, NBC and MSNBC correspondent Katy Tur covered the 2016 presidential campaign and in particular now-President Donald Trump. A former foreign correspondent, Tur began her stint on the Trump campaign under the impression that she'd be back home in London in just six weeks, but her experiences on the campaign trail altered her career and life forever. *Online Streaming Available

Van Jones: Beyond the Messy Truth

Premiere - Nov. 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT

Civil rights activist Van Jones offers a blueprint for transforming our collective anxiety into meaningful change. Tough on Donald Trump but showing respect and empathy for his supporters, Jones takes aim at the failures of both parties before and after Trump's victory. *Online Streaming Available

4 Corners: Hillary Clinton, The Interview

Premiere - Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. ET/PT

In a special edition of Four Corners, Hillary Clinton, in her only Australian television interview, talks with Sarah Ferguson. This conversation, recorded in New York, takes viewers into the heart and mind of the woman at the center of the most stunning election loss in modern US history.  *Online Streaming Available

Charles Sykes: How the Right Lost its Mind

Premiere - Nov. 29 at 8 p.m. ET/PT

Once at the center of the American conservative movement, bestselling author and radio host Charles Sykes is a fierce opponent of Donald Trump and the right-wing media that enabled his rise. Sykes presents an impassioned, regretful and deeply thoughtful account of how the American conservative movement came to lose its values. *Online Streaming Available

Korengal

Premiere -  Dec. 3 at 8 p.m. ET/PT

Filmmaker Sebastian Junger embeds with a unit in Afghanistan to examine what war feels like and what it does to soldiers. Picking up where RESTREPO left off; the same men, the same valley, the same commanders, but a very different look at the experience of war. *Available for streaming seven days after broadcast on linktv.org

Muhammad Yunus: Doing Good in an Uncertain World

Premiere - Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. ET/PT

As the world's wealth shifts into the hands of the few, a new system is emerging to address the inequality, unemployment and environmental destruction that Muhammad Yunus says goes hand in hand with capitalism. The Nobel Peace Prize winner believes that today's economic system is broken and must be reformed to provide opportunity for all. *Online Streaming Available

Climate One Presents Ai WeiWei: Human Flow

 Premiere - Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. ET/PT

More than 65 million people around the world have been forced from their homes to escape famine, climate change and war, the greatest displacement since World War II. An artist who uses many canvases to express himself, Ai Weiwei examines the staggering scale of the refugee crisis and how climate changes plays a role in population movement. *Online Streaming Available

Climate One Presents: A Conversation With Amy Goodman and Kenneth Kimmell

Premiere - Dec. 5 at 8 p.m. ET/PT

Link TV's popular daily news program DEMOCRACY NOW! host Amy Goodman has built a career on covering movements that highlight solutions and catalyze change. When trying to fight a campaign of disinformation about climate change, who better to be on your side than Goodman and the lawyer running Union for Concerned Scientists, Kenneth Kimmell. “What we're seeing in Washington is the rise of the 'oil-igarchy', explains Goodman as she goes on to call out Rex Tillerson, Rick Perry and Scott Pruitt. And the list goes on. Between these two, they have seen it all. *Online Streaming Available

Dramatic Escape

Premiere - Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT

Directed by Nick Quested, inmates at Sing Sing Correctional Facility in Upstate New York attempt to mount a behind-bars production of "A Few Good Men." *Available for streaming seven days after broadcast on linktv.org

ABOUT LINK TV

Founded in 1999, Link TV is an independent viewer-supported media organization providing programs that engage viewers with unique perspectives on national and global issues.  Reaching more than 34 million U.S. satellite households nationally via DIRECTV channel 375 and DISH Network channel 9410, Link TV connects Americans with people at the heart of breaking events, organizations at the forefront of social change and the vibrant cultures of a global community. It is a free non-commercial service of KCETLink Media Group, based in Burbank, CA. For additional information about Link TV productions, web-exclusive content and program schedules, please visit linktv.org. Select programming from Link TV is also available for streaming on Apple TV and Roku platforms.

ABOUT THE COMMONWEALTH CLUB OF CALIFORNIA

About the Commonwealth Club of California Founded in 1903, The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's premier public affairs forum, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with more than 22,000 members. Based in San Francisco with a second office in San Jose, the Club hosts more than 450 speeches and discussions each year on issues of regional, national and international significance. The Commonwealth Club's weekly radiobroadcast airs on more than 230 public and commercial stations across the country. The Club's podcasts are downloaded about 2.5 million times each year. The Club's videos also appear on the California Channel, C-SPAN and YouTube, where they have been viewed millions of times. For the past 11 decades, the Club has fostered free speech and civic dialogue on a wide range of topics, addressing key issues in society, culture, politics, the economy and more. For more information, visit http://www.commonwealthclub.org

ABOUT CLIMATE ONE

Climate One is a special project of the Commonwealth Club of California. It is a live forum, podcast, radio and television program for candid discussion. By bringing together climate scientists, policymakers, activists, business leaders and concerned citizens, host Greg Dalton is changing the conversation on energy, economy and the environment. By gathering inspiring, credible, and compelling information, they are an essential resource to change-makers looking to make a difference on the most important issue of our time. For more information, visit climateone.org

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