Tag Archives: Independent Lens

Uvalde Massacre Tragically Mirrors Newtown School Shooting

“When an assault weapon is used in a mass shooting, it can lead to six times as many people shot than with other guns.”—Everytownresearch.org “Of the 26 dead, most are children,” reported NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt to a … Continue reading

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Fred Rogers Celebrated in Won’t You Be My Neighbor? on HBO and PBS

“Love is at the root of everything–all learning, all parenting, all relationships–love or the lack of it.”—Fred Rogers. Love your neighbor. Love yourself.  It sounds easy; but, as we all know, it isn’t.  No one knew that better than Fred … Continue reading

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Celebrating Black History Month on HBO and PBS

As Black History Month draws to a close, what better day than Presidents’ Day 2018 to shine a light on African-Americans who’ve defied cultural, economic, sexist and, most especially, racist roadblocks in pursuit of higher education. Tonight, Monday, February 19, … Continue reading

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Transgender Teen Speaks Out as a Real Boy on PBS

“I am literally a boy with the wrong body parts,” remarks 19-year-old Bennett in the hour-long documentary, Real Boy. Feeling comfortable in one’s skin is never easy, especially during adolescence. But for someone like Bennett aka Ben aka Rachael, the roadblocks … Continue reading

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School Shooting in Newtown Recalled on Independent Lens

“Of the 26 dead, most are children,” reported NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt to a nation stunned by the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012. Six educators and 20 six- and seven-year-old … Continue reading

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Tower Debuts on PBS and Revisits Austin Massacre

“If I could see the top of the tower, then the sniper could see me,” says Ray Martinez, former Austin, Texas, patrolman, as he recalls the chain of events that thrust him into the line of fire during America’s first mass … Continue reading

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Touching Take on Twin Sisters Debuts on PBS

It’s not every day that you get to see the work of a Norwegian documentary filmmaker on American TV, but tonight I encourage you to jump at the chance to catch the U.S. broadcast premiere of Twin Sisters on Independent Lens (PBS, Monday, October 20, 2014, 10:00-11:00 p.m. ET. … Continue reading

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Bully Bows on PBS

The statistics are staggering– “more than 13 million American kids will be bullied this year”–but not surprising, given the expanded reach available to perpetrators via social media.  I’m sure it took much soul-searching and courage on the part of the children, their … Continue reading

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The Invisible War Debuts Monday Night on PBS

Tomorrow night, the PBS series Independent Lens will host the broadcast premiere of a documentary I first covered during its theatrical release last summer (FrontRowCenter, July 2012).   Given the horrifying jump in sexual assaults in the military (current statistics were released by the … Continue reading

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The House I Live In Needs Repair

There are no easy answers to why America’s so-called “war on drugs” has been a failure, but filmmaker Eugene Jarecki’s new documentary, The House I Live In, raises enough pertinent questions and points enough fingers to fill half-a-dozen films. As a result, … Continue reading

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