Q. What makes FACES OF AMERICA so special?

Gates: After my work on the African American Lives series, I got thousands of letters from people all over America saying, “Why not do my history?” So, I decided to do the same kind of analysis and research on people of Irish, Italian, Japanese, Chinese and other ethnicities, and the results are just as dramatic as in African American Lives. All of the guests on FACES OF AMERICA were deeply moved by what we revealed about their ancestry. We were able to trace the ancestry of Native American writer Louise Erdrich back to 438 A.D. We found that Queen Noor is descended from royalty, and that’s before she married King Hussein of Jordan. We found that the African American poet Elizabeth Alexander is related to the emperor Charlemagne!

We went even further and used DNA analysis to look for “deep cousins” — common ancestors among our guests — and we found genetic connections between eleven of our twelve guests. I found that despite all our apparent differences in terms of culture and history, we are all the same.

Q. Were you surprised about anything you found as you explored the ancestry of your guests?

Gates: I was surprised by the amount of genealogy data that exists for people who are not African American. Because of slavery, the “paper trail” for African Americans only goes back 200 years. Similarly, the records of Dr. Oz and Queen Noor’s families were destroyed during the fall of the Ottoman Empire. So it was a surprise to go back in history as far as we were able. We also uncovered surprising genetic connections between our guests, and their ethnic admixture. We presented each guest with a pie chart showing their racial admixture, and the people who were 100% Asian or European expressed regret at not being more mixed!

Q. You and your father, Henry Louis Gates, Sr., had your genomes sequenced for FACES OF AMERICA … what was that like?

Gates: We always knew we were going to do genome sequencing for two people, because that’s what we had the budget for — the science is incredibly expensive. So I jumped at the chance to participate, and I was very interested in finding out the genetic differences between my father and I. We made history in the process. My father and I are not only the first African Americans, but also the first father and son to have their genomes sequenced. In addition, at age 96, my father is the oldest person to have the procedure done. He also made the results public, so scientists will be studying his genetic makeup for generations to come.

Right now, the science of genome sequencing is in its infancy. Imagine being in the Library of Congress, but only having the reading level of “See Dick, See Jane.” When it comes to genome sequencing, we’re at that level of analysis right now, but we’re learning more every day. For me, it was very emotional to see the presence of my mother’s genome in my own map; she died in 1987, so it was like having a piece of her with me again.

Q: So what’s next for you? Were you left with any questions after completing FACES OF AMERICA

Gates: I found it astonishing that some of our guests, despite their ethnic differences, were related. I would like to do a series about sequencing the human genome, and also analyze more human diversity among other ethnic groups – a FACES OF AMERICA 2.

The 2010 awards also bring a number of highlights: for the first time, Katie Couric goes on the record about her memorable interviews with Sarah Palin. In addition, six local television stations were awarded the silver baton – the highest number of local reports to win in more than two decades. And 2010 is the first year in which the duPont Awards recognized a web-based production – in the form of Jonathan Togovnick’s multimedia effort that tells the harrowing stories of rape survivors from the Rwandan genocide.

Watch TELLING THE TRUTH – THE BEST IN BROADCAST JOURNALISM – an insightful look into the work of reporters and producers as they uncover injustice and chase down important stories.

Tuesday, February 2

10:30pm

Independent Lens
“Herskovits at the Heart of Blackness” examines the forgotten legacy of Melville Herskovits, a controversial Jewish anthropologist whose writings challenged widely held assumptions about race and culture. Premieres Tuesday, 2/2 at 10:30pm. Read more…
Please view the original post to see the video.

Wednesday, February 3

3am

NOVA “Forgotten Genius”
“Forgotten Genius” is a fascinating and largely unknown story of scientific triumph and racial inequality. It covers the extraordinary life journey of Percy Julian, one of the great chemists of the 20th century.

8pm

A Ripple of Hope
“A Ripple of Hope” captures one poignant day in the life of Robert Kennedy. The film explores Kennedy’s little-known act of personal courage and responsibility the day that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated — April 4, 1968. The film dramatically retells the events of that tragic day 40 years ago through the eyes of those who were there.

Saturday, February 7

10pm

Great Performances “Harlem in Montmartre”
Beloved American jazz singer and bandleader Cab Calloway once said, “You hear about the Duke Ellingtons, the Jimmy Luncefords, the Fletcher Hendersons, but people sometimes forget that jazz was not only built in the minds of the great ones, but on the backs of the ordinary ones.” While far from ordinary, “Harlem in Montmartre” tells the story of the long-forgotten “extraordinary ones” who left America to create the jazz age in Paris between the First and Second World Wars.
Please view the original post to see the video.

Thursday, February 11

8pm

In Performance at the White House: Music of the Civil Rights Era
“In Performance at the White House: Music of the Civil Rights Era” showcases special guests including Jennifer Hudson, John Legend, Seal, Smokey Robinson and the Blind Boys of Alabama.

Monday, February 22

1am

Scarred Justice: The Orangeburg Massacre 1968
Scarred Justice brings to light one of the bloodiest tragedies of the Civil Rights era after four decades of deliberate denial.

9pm

American Masters | Zora Neale Hurston: Jump at the Sun
Zora Neale Hurston attained unique success in many areas, but during her lifetime her words and conclusions were often surrounded in contention. This definitive film biography portrays Zora Neale Hurston in all her complexity: gifted, flamboyant, and controversial but always fiercely original.

Tuesday, February 23

10pm

Independent Lens “Behind the Rainbow”
What if you took the American civil war and mashed it up with the French Revolution and the U.S. civil rights movement? That’s what it felt like in South Africa, when the Mandela miracle brought down Apartheid. But can the deal between the old Apartheid regime and the new government withstand the test of time?

Sunday, February 28

12am

Blacking Up: Hip-Hop’s Remix of Race and Identity
“Blacking Up: Hip-Hop’s Remix of Race” and Identity explores racial identity through the lens of hip-hop music and culture. Participants in the film include Russell Simmons, Chuck D., Vanilla Ice, Amiri Baraka, Paul Mooney, Nelson George, M1, Greg Tate, Power, Aesop Rock, Sage Francis, Empire Isis, John Leland, DJ Kool Herc, Empire Isis, among others.

Watch the full program now.
Please view the original post to see the video.

If you want to help, below is a list of relief organizations.

AMERICAN RED CROSS
Text “HAITI” to “90999″ to make a $10 donation.
2025 E Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006
(800) REDCROSS (733-2767)

AMERICARES
88 Hamilton Avenue
Stamford, Conn. 06902
(800) 486-4357

CARE
151 Ellis Street
Atlanta, Ga. 30303
(800) 521-CARE (521-2273)

DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS USA/MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES (MSF)
333 7th Avenue, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10001-5004
(888) 392-0392

INTERNATIONAL ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHARITIES
P.O. Box 630225
Baltimore, Md. 21263-0225
(877) 803-4622

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE
122 E. 42nd Street
New York, NY 10168
(877) REFUGEE (733-8433)

MERCY CORPS
Dept. W
P.O. Box 2669
Portland, Ore., 97208-2669
(888) 256-1900

OXFAM AMERICA
226 Causeway St., 5th Floor
Boston, MA 02114-2206
(800) 77-OXFAM (776-9326)

PARTNERS IN HEALTH
P.O. Box 845578
Boston, MA 02284-5578
(617) 432-5256

THE SALVATION ARMY
615 Slaters Lane
P.O. Box 269
Alexandria, VA 22313

SAVE THE CHILDREN
Haiti Earthquake Children in Emergency Fund
54 Wilton Road
Westport, Conn. 06880
(800) 728-3843

WORLD VISION
Haiti Earthquake Relief
P.O. Box 9716
Federal Way, Wash. 98063-9716
(888) 511-6548

U.S. FUND FOR UNICEF
125 Maiden Lane
New York, N.Y. 10038
(800) FOR-KIDS (367-5437)

CONCERN WORLDWIDE US
104 E. 40th St., # 903
New York, NY 10016
(212) 557-8000
(800) 59-CONCERN

Watch a preview:
(View full post to see video)

Logan Abassi / The United Nations

In addition to musical performances, “Hope for Haiti Now” will feature more than one hundred of the biggest names in film, television, and music supporting the cause with testimonials and by answering phones during the telethon. Haitian singer Wyclef Jean anchors the telethon from New York City, George Clooney from Los Angeles, and CNN’s Anderson Cooper from Haiti.

Additionally, WNET.ORG stations THIRTEEN, WLIW21 and WLIW World will air “Metrofocus Special: New York Reacts to Haiti”:
Thursday, January 21 at 9:30 p.m. on THIRTEEN
Friday, January 22 at 1 p.m. on WLIW World
Saturday, January 23 at 9 a.m. on THIRTEEN
Sunday, January 24 at 5 p.m. on WLIW World
Sunday, January 24 at 5:30 p.m. on WLIW21

Guests will offer insight and perspective on crisis in Haiti, including:
Marcel Toussain, President of the organization Haitian Orphans Wish
Siobhan Walsh, Executive Director of Concern Worldwide
Fatima Shama, NYC Commissioner of Immigrant Affairs

On the Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly website, managing editor Kim Lawton talks with Cheryl Sanders, professor of Christian ethics at Howard Divinity School, about how the civil rights leader’s teachings about war and nonviolence apply today.

Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly airs Saturdays at 10:30am and Sundays at 6:30pm on WLIW21.

Long before everyday people began posting their video mash-ups online, hip-hop musicians perfected the art of audio montage through a sport they called “sampling.” “Copyright Criminals,” a documentary by Benjamin Franzen and Kembrew McLeod, examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, and the ongoing debate about artistic expression. The film features hip-hop legends like Chuck D, De La Soul, DJ Spooky, Pete Rock, Mix Master Mike, and more. Inside THIRTEEN spoke with Franzen and McLeod about sampling, hip-hop, copyright law and (of course!) money.

Chuck D

Hip-hop artists had to stop making dense audio collages with multiple fragments of sound because it is economically prohibitive to do so. If you sample five songs, you have to negotiate with multiple copyright holders, which can become prohibitively expensive. This is one reason why so much hip-hop these days are made with synthesizers and no samples—or they are just made with one prominent, obvious sample.

Q. One of the biggest knocks against hip-hop music is the use of sampling. Do you think that hip-hop can be considered a legitimate, original form of music if it depends on sampling?

Yes, sampling Bo Diddley’s drum beat or a bluesy Led Zeppelin riff is different than replaying it on a traditional instrument, but these two practices are more similar than not. Just as it’s easy to be unoriginal when using a digital sampler, the same is also true for a guitarist who is copying someone else’s riff. It’s how you play it, not the instrument itself. For instance, Public Enemy and their peers typically sampled many short audio fragments, transforming them in the process. It’s hard to credibly claim that these uses are competing with the originals in the marketplace, which is what copyright law is supposed to protect against.

Q. Artists like Girl Talk create entire albums based on sampling the work of others. If an album created like this is sold, how much money should go to Girl Talk, and how much to the artists who have been sampled?

Just to license a single sample from a record, one has to deal with two types of copyright holders: the song publishing company that controls the composition (the lyrics and melody) and the record company that owns the sound recording (whether it be in CD, LP, or MP3 form). Each copyright can be expensive to clear, and the costs multiply exponentially if a song contains several samples. When you have many parties negotiating for their own biggest piece of the pie, you sometimes end up paying 200%, 500%, or even 2,000% of what it costs to release a song with no samples. Of course, original creators ought to share in profits when it is appropriate, but each share should be a fraction of what the new work generates, not a multiple.

Clyde Stubblefield

As a matter of principle, if anyone is going to get paid, it should be the artists who played on the original song. Sadly, the case of Clyde shows that this is not the case—because it’s typically the intermediaries, the record companies and song publishing companies—who get the windfall. This has more to do with grotesque music industry practices and contract law, rather than copyright law itself.

Q. We live in a culture that has embraces the idea of the “mash-up” – everyone from YouTube geeks to CNN take music and video content from other sources and puts them together in new compositions. Are copyright lawyers going to catch up with mash-ups as well?

At the same time digital media has developed a “democratic” potential, copyright clearance has made it less so. The content industry has imposed licensing procedures on independent creators that only make sense for companies with vast economic resources. This has created a caste system dividing those who can afford to play by the rules and those who can’t buy in—an inequality that seems rather arbitrary. Why is it that one has to scale a wall of money and a thicket of administrative hassles before a project has the right to legally exist? Wouldn’t it make more sense to pay a reasonable fee to a centralized royalty collection organization, based on how much the new work makes? An imperfect-but-useful model is ASCAP, whose “blanket license” makes it possible for radio stations, bars, and live venues to allow music on their premises. Instead of tracking down each and every song publisher and negotiating fees before a song is played in their establishment, they merely have to pay an annual lump sum to one entity.

Q. In the film, you attempt to answer the question “Can you own a sound?” Did you find an answer?

Courts and the music industry answered that one definitively: YES! However, our rhetorical question is really meant to get people to start asking questions about ownership of culture and music, and hopefully begin an interesting dialogue. Our question of “Can you own a sound?” was often re-phrased to interviewees, “Should someone have the exclusive right to a sound?” Our film doesn’t provide the answers because these are very complex issues, but the best way to arrive at a solution is to engage in a conversation.

If you’re worried about a family member who may have been in the quake, you can contact the U.S. State Department Operations Center by dialing 1-888-407-4747 from the United States.

If you want to help, below is a list of relief organizations.

AMERICAN RED CROSS
Text “HAITI” to “90999″ to make a $10 donation.
2025 E Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006
(800) REDCROSS (733-2767)

AMERICARES
88 Hamilton Avenue
Stamford, Conn. 06902
(800) 486-4357

CARE
151 Ellis Street
Atlanta, Ga. 30303
(800) 521-CARE (521-2273)

DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS USA/MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES (MSF)
333 7th Avenue, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10001-5004
(888) 392-0392

INTERNATIONAL ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHARITIES
P.O. Box 630225
Baltimore, Md. 21263-0225
(877) 803-4622

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE
122 E. 42nd Street
New York, NY 10168
(877) REFUGEE (733-8433)

MERCY CORPS
Dept. W
P.O. Box 2669
Portland, Ore., 97208-2669
(888) 256-1900

OXFAM AMERICA
226 Causeway St., 5th Floor
Boston, MA 02114-2206
(800) 77-OXFAM (776-9326)

PARTNERS IN HEALTH
P.O. Box 845578
Boston, MA 02284-5578
(617) 432-5256

THE SALVATION ARMY
615 Slaters Lane
P.O. Box 269
Alexandria, VA 22313

SAVE THE CHILDREN
Haiti Earthquake Children in Emergency Fund
54 Wilton Road
Westport, Conn. 06880
(800) 728-3843

WORLD VISION
Haiti Earthquake Relief
P.O. Box 9716
Federal Way, Wash. 98063-9716
(888) 511-6548

U.S. FUND FOR UNICEF
125 Maiden Lane
New York, N.Y. 10038
(800) FOR-KIDS (367-5437)

CONCERN WORLDWIDE US
104 E. 40th St., # 903
New York, NY 10016
(212) 557-8000
(800) 59-CONCERN

Is it doomsday for the MTA? This week on Metrofocus, get an an in-depth look at potential subway and bus service cuts and the MTA budget shortfall with Pete Donohue, Transit Reporter for the Daily News and Aaron Naparstek, editor of streetsblog.com.

Naparstek spoke with Blueprint America about the way transportation is looked at in New York City, and how our system compares with the rest of the country.

Sundays at 3:30 pm
Simply Ming

The Emmy® nominated public television series Simply Ming is back for its seventh season, bringing mouthwatering recipes into homes across the country. With an all-star guest lineup, flavor abounds in recipes inspired by the combination of East and West ingredients such as Coconut Milk and Cranberries, and Panko and Dijon. Fresh, healthy ingredients add vibrance to the dishes. And, from pantry to pot, Ming continues to offer recipes that can be prepared in one vessel. Watch now.

Sundays at 4 p.m.
Everyday Food

Each half-hour episode of Everyday Food offers quick, easy and practical solutions to the challenges of everyday cooking and includes easy-to-make recipes along with smart tips and kitchen techniques. The Everyday Food television show cast consists of five home-grown talents from the kitchens of Martha Stewart Living: Sarah Carey, Allie Lewis, Margot Olshan, Emma Feigenbaum, and Lucinda Scala Quinn.

Watch video of recipes from Everyday Food at pbs.org

Sundays at 4:30 p.m.
Food Trip with Todd English

Master chef, author and restaurateur Todd English brings his talent and taste for reinventing traditional cooking to public television. During his travels at home and abroad, Todd explores a different dish or culinary tradition, drawing inspiration for new recipes from each locale’s native cuisine and ingredients.

Watch a preview:



Sundays at 5 p.m.
America’s Test Kitchen

America’s Test Kitchen is the most-watched cooking show on public television. Each episode features recipes carefully developed to make sure they work every time. Christopher Kimball and the test cooks solve everyday cooking problems, test equipment so you never have to waste money on things that don’t work, and taste supermarket ingredients to save you time in the store. It’s a common-sense, practical approach you won’t find on other cooking shows.

Watch a blooper reel from America’s Test Kitchen:

Sundays at 5:30 p.m.
Lidia’s Italy

Journey with Lidia to her ten favorite regions around Italy as she introduces you to friends and family and takes you to food markets, fishing villages and farms as you haggle over the price of fish and forage for the perfect truffle. Then, return back to Lidia’s familiar kitchen to prepare a sumptuous meal as you, the viewer cook along.

Watch a preview:

Sundays at 6 p.m.
Colameco’s Food Show
Colameco’s Food Show is the only food show on television that showcases the New York City restaurant scene. Shot guerilla-documentary style, Mike Colameco and his seasoned PBS camera crew take you back stage behind the scenes to visit with chefs and restaurateurs. From the kitchens of Per Se, Le Bernardin, Daniel and Ducasse, to the best fried chicken in Harlem, noodles in Chinatown, Korean Stir fry on 32nd street, the best hot dogs, sandwiches, burgers, and ingredient shopping.

Watch a preview:

Q. There are a lot of street musicians out there … What compelled you to pick Nathan Stodola for New York on the Clock?

We saw him in a Boba Fett mask playing Star Wars music and were instantly charmed.

Q. What kinds of songs does he play?

He plays mostly but not exclusively video game and movie music. Some music (Amelie) comes ready for accordion but most of it he has to adapt. I think my favorite thing I’ve heard him play is the Mario swimming music. (For those of you feeling nostalgic, listen to the underwater Mario Bros. theme music here. – ed.)

Q. How much money does he make in a typical day? Enough for a Columbia tuition?

He makes enough to pay rent and eat. Now that it’s cold I doubt he’s out as often.

Q. In the film, Nathan verbally thanks people who give him money … Shouldn’t a guy in a Boba Fett mask stay true to character and not speak?

Interesting point. It would’ve been more exciting if he lured the guy to Bespin and had him frozen in carbonite.

Spike Lee interviews the Stew, the creator of Passing Strange, and his main collaborator Heidi Rodewald to give a look at the creation of the rock musical that rocked Broadway. The two discuss the magical closing night of Passing Strange on Broadway, the origins of the production with The Public, the importance of documenting theater, and their plans for the future.

Watch a preview of Passing Strange and more at the Great Performances website.

Director Nancy Porter, producer Harriet Reisen, and actress Elizabeth Marvel field questions from the audience at the premiere screening of Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind ‘Little Women’.

Watch a preview of the film, outtakes and more at the American Masters website.

What is the nature of human uniqueness? Where did the Human Spark ignite, and when? And perhaps most tantalizingly, why? In a three-part series to be broadcast on PBS in January 2010, Alan Alda takes these questions personally, visiting with dozens of scientists on three continents, and participating directly in many experiments – including the detailed examination of his own brain.

Inside THIRTEEN spoke with Alda and “The Human Spark” series producer Graham Chedd and executive producer Jared Lipworth about the upcoming series and what we can expect to learn about the nature of humanity itself.

Think origami is just paper planes and cranes? A determined group of theoretical scientists and fine artists have abandoned careers and graduate degrees to forge new lives as modern-day paper folders. Together they reinterpret the world in paper, creating a wild mix of sensibilities towards art, science, creativity and meaning. Inside THIRTEEN spoke with filmmaker Vanessa Gould about her fascination with this unique art form and her film “Between the Folds.”

Q. What got you interested in documenting the world of paper folding?

Well, for many years I’ve been keenly interested in ideas and forms that have roots in both art and science, the creative and the technical – music and architecture, for example. When I learned about mathematicians using paperfolding in their research, I was intrigued and loved that it had such a visually compelling quality. Soon I learned that not only mathematicians, but also artists and scientists, were finding new and substantive exploration in paperfolding – all with incredible outcomes.

Given the breadth of voices and the elemental nature of the medium – a simple paper square – I thought, “Wow, imagine the possibilities! What an amazing starting point for an artform!”

Q. Do you think origami and paper folding gets enough respect as an art form on par with other arts like painting and sculpture?

One of the things that I love about paperfolding is how special the process of arriving at a finished piece is. There’s this pure transformation that occurs when turning 2D into 3D – all while working within a set of great limitations (no cutting, no tape, no glue). It becomes an intellectual and creative challenge, where “the making” is as significant as “the product”. And, so while, admittedly, origami has not reached the elevated status of other fine arts, it’s still a young and evolving artform. I think once the broader population has the experience of witnessing firsthand the transformation that occurs behind every folded work – and acknowledges that transformation as central to the piece’s artistic merit and beauty – that then artform will be better understood. And we tried to reveal that as best we couldin the film.

Q. Is there a particular piece of origami that you saw during filming that moved you?

Impressionistic squirrel from handmade paper by U.S. artist Michael LaFosse.

Q. How old is the art of paper folding, in comparison to other forms of art?

Paper has been around for centuries, and is one of the most abundant materials on earth. And so, paperfolding has happened in all kinds of forms for a long time. However, I believe the medium is earlier in its evolution than more mature forms of art like painting, sculpture or printmaking. I think paperfolding has yet to reach its evolutionary or conceptual peak, and has a very rich future ahead of it. And the fact that it has abundant practical applications makes it that much more amazing.

Q. Origami seems to involve a lot of planning and mathematics – is there room for improvisation in creating some of these intricate designs?

I think there’s plenty of room for improvisation in everything. There’s always room for thinking differently and getting creative. The scientists and mathematicians in the film are no less creative – by any measure – than the artists. That’s one of the wonderful things I witnessed while making the film and watching its subjects at work – science and math are driven by creativity. And so, any good models in paper, no matter how intricate, are also a product of creative and improvisational thinking.

Q. Can origami lend itself to practical uses beyond cute animal figures?

Hopefully the film itself is the best answer to that question!

“American Masters” won two Golden Eagle Awards:

Garrison Keillor: A Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes

Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About

Congratulations to the entire “American Masters” team!

In September, the program won an Emmy® for Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About, and Inside THIRTEEN spoke with Susan Lacy about that win and what makes the program so great. Read the full interview here.