2014 Local Content and Service Report to the Community
OVERVIEW
Since 1964, KCET has served as the public television station for Los Angeles and an 11-county region of Southern and Central California. We reach one of the most diverse market areas in the country with the finest regional, national and international programming, as well as with free educational resources and community events open to all.
In December 2012, KCET merged with San Francisco-based Link TV, an award-winning national media organization focused on global news and culture. With the new name of KCETLink, our merged organization is a national, independent, non-profit, 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 that is unavailable elsewhere in US media.
Under the umbrella of KCETLink, we are maintaining the distinct services and brands of KCET and Link TV, while also finding exciting opportunities to share content and resources across all of our platforms and expand the possibilities of transmedia production and distribution.
Below, please find an overview of KCET’s service to the Southern and Central California community in 2014.
LOCAL/REGIONAL MEDIA PROGRAMMING
In the past year, KCET continued its commitment to producing and broadcasting a rich array of award-winning programs about and for our region. KCET’s original regional productions include the following:
SoCal Connected – On the air since 2008, SoCal Connected is a weekly half-hour news magazine that provides substantive and engaging stories about the issues and events that affect Southern California. The series explores topics ranging from the environment to the economy, from government to education, from health to local culture. Anchored by popular KCET journalist Val Zavala, SoCal Connected has been recognized for its quality journalism and contributions to the community with the prestigious George Foster KCETLink - CPB LCSR 2014 Page 2 of 14
Peabody Award and two Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, along with 20 Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards; 24 Golden Mike Awards from the Radio & Television News Association of Southern California; 47 LA Press Club Awards; and five Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards, among many accolades.
Artbound – A groundbreaking transmedia series, Artbound explores the arts, including community-based, urban, folk and public art, across Southern and Central California. The series re-imagines arts journalism by utilizing over 200 arts columnists—located throughout eleven counties—who continually scan the cultural landscape for under- represented artists, ensembles and movements. To date, Artbound columnists have contributed over 970 long-form multimedia articles to the series site. Each week, viewers vote to select which article will be expanded into a short-form video documentary. Every other month, Artbound producers compile the best online material into a one-hour television episode. Launched online in 2012, Artbound was named Best Arts & Culture Site at the 2012 LA Weekly Web Awards, and has been honored with two Golden Mike Awards from the Radio & Television News Association of Southern California; a National Entertainment Journalism Award and a Southern California Journalism Award from the Los Angeles Press Club; and an “Official Honoree” distinction from the Webby Awards. In 2014, Artbound was recognized with a Los Angeles Area Emmy Award for Best Entertainment Programming for the special episode, “Invisible Cities,” which captures an experimental opera production in Union Station in Downtown Los Angeles.
Artbound Presents Studio A – This half- hour performance program features intimate concerts and interviews with influential and emerging musicians from around Southern California. Artbound Presents Studio A sets out to chart the musical landscape of the Southland, and how local musicians are capturing the ethos of the most culturally diverse region in the world. Genres explored on the series include rock, jazz, folk, classical and Cumbia, among many others. Broadcast in primetime on KCET since March 2014, Artbound Presents Studio A is also simulcast on public radio station KCSN-FM (88.5), which is based on the campus of California State University, Northridge. To date, we have filmed concert events featuring artists such as “drone-metal-art-folk” singer-songwriter Chelsea Wolfe; Los Angeles-based quartet Chicano Batman; surf rock duo Best Coast; Korean American indie rock-folk sextet Run River North; neo-soul hip hop duo The Internet; 10-piece gypsy jazz ensemble Noah and the Megafauna; female rock duo Deap Vally; Grammy-winning Mexican American band La Santa Cecilia; and many more.
Fine Cut – Now in its 17th year on KCET, Fine Cut presents some of the best documentary, comedic, dramatic and animated short films by student filmmakers hailing
KCETLink - CPB LCSR 2014 Page 3 of 14 from Southern California’s renowned film schools, including UCLA, USC, CalArts, California State University, Long Beach and Loyola Marymount University. KCET honors the filmmakers by broadcasting their work in a multi-week on-air festival. As part of the festival, KCET hosts a “Best of Show” public screening event, which is traditionally held at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in Hollywood. For most of the filmmakers who participate, Fine Cut is their television debut, which often leads to other career opportunities. Additionally, Fine Cut films and/or previews remain available for viewing on the KCET website, at: http://kcet.org/shows/fine_cut/. The Fine Cut site also features interviews with the filmmakers, descriptions of each film and other web- original content.
City Walk – Now in its second season, City Walk is the only television series that journeys by foot across the country for a pedestrian’s-eye-view of urban America. Experience the vibrant streets and sidewalks of Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Atlanta, San Francisco, Portland, Las Vegas, Denver, Washington, DC and more. Discover stunning architecture, magnificent monuments, serene parks and communities transformed by a new breed of pedestrians who march to the beat of a different drummer. City Walk is a multimedia series that explores walkable neighborhoods – often in previously neglected downtown areas across the nation – and how they have replaced the suburbs in popularity and value. The series reveals the ways in which walking is transforming cities across America, and in the process, re-connecting us to our bodies, our civic values and public space.
EXPANDED GLOBAL PROGRAMMING
Stand Up Planet – In 2014, we premiered a new KCETLink original production, Stand Up Planet. This documentary project explores how stand-up comedians in countries such as India and South Africa use comedy to explore difficult social issues. With major funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Stand Up Planet seeks to harness the universal power of comedy to change the conversation about global poverty. The documentary follows comedian/host Hasan Minhaj (newly named Daily Show correspondent) as he travels to India and South Africa to find a new wave of young, outspoken comics who – by sharing their realities through humor – are slaying audiences with truth, making them laugh and making them think. The documentary then follows one Indian and one South African comic as they journey to Los Angeles to perform alongside Minhaj at the iconic Laugh Factory – but not before stopping off along the way to chat with three comedy legends: Bill Cosby, Carl Reiner and producer Norman Lear.
The Stand Up Planet one-hour documentary and one-hour comedy showcase premiered in May 2014 on KCET, Link TV and the new youth-oriented Pivot channel. The documentary was also distributed in India by NDTV Prime in May. Stand Up Planet maintains a robust online presence
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(www.standupplanet.org), with hundreds of web-original assets that further inform audiences about global issues such as poverty, sanitation and public health.
Border Blaster – This new multi-platform KCETLink production provides a curated collection of music videos from around the world. The series transcends national borders and exposes viewers to the cross-fertilization of musical styles and genres defining contemporary music. Online (at www.borderblaster.org), viewers can discover and watch a diverse range of music videos, as well as mixes curated by the Border Blaster production team. Viewers can also vote for their favorite videos and create user-curated mixes, to be broadcast the last week of every month. The Border Blaster television show premiered on KCET in October 2014, and now airs twice per week. Border Blaster is made possible by collaboration with independent record labels and artists from around the world.
Earth Focus – As the longest-running environmental news magazine on US television, KCETLink’s Earth Focus is filling a key information gap by providing top-notch reporting on critical environmental issues, and combining television broadcasts with the power of the web and social media to inform, engage and mobilize citizens to become environmental stewards and advocates. On the air on Link TV since 2006 and on KCET since 2013, Earth Focus is a weekly half-hour primetime series featuring original investigative reports, as well as content acquired from partner organizations. Recent topics explored include: the impact of fracking in communities around the world; the health hazards of chemicals in our everyday lives; the plight of Asian elephants; critical water shortages across the globe; the alarming impact of pesticides on bee populations, as well as on fish, wildlife and humans; and much more.
BBC World News – Since 2008, KCET has served as the national marketing and distribution partner for BBC World News on American public television. In addition to distributing BBC World News programming to public television stations around the country, we prominently feature BBC programming in our broadcast schedule, including the daily telecasts of BBC World News and BBC World News America, and the weekly public affairs series, BBC Newsnight.
NHK – KCET has been building a productive relationship with NHK, Japan’s national public broadcasting organization. We have added NHK’s Newsline to KCET’s international news block, and in August 2013 we converted one of our sub-channels (28.4) into the NHK World channel, featuring Japanese and Asian news and lifestyle programming around the clock. This English-language channel is distributed via digital broadcast to Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura Counties.
International Scripted Series – Through our merger with Link TV, we are now bringing local audiences some of the most popular world titles that Link TV viewers have been enjoying. The KCET schedule now includes the Peabody Award-winning Danish political drama, Borgen, which the New York Times has called “one of the best shows…on American television”; and the provocative and hilarious Israeli comedy, Arab Labor.
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DIVERSE PROGRAMMING
Ukiyo-e (a cultural series pilot) – In 2014, KCET partnered with the US-Japan Council on a project to create a pilot media program around Ukiyo-e, the ancient Japanese art form. Meaning “Pictures of the Floating World,” Ukiyo-e refers to the prints and illustrated books that depicted the lives of the townspeople of Edo (now Tokyo) and other urban centers during the Edo period (1603-1868).
Japanese American Lives – As we recognized Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month in May, KCET partnered with the US-Japan Council to present Japanese American Lives, a documentary series showcasing the richness of the Japanese American experience. The series was presented nationally by the Center for Asian American Media. Four documentaries aired on KCET and Link TV, including Mrs. Judo: Be Strong, Be Gentle, Be Beautiful, a portrait of the highest-ranking female in judo history, from director Yuriko Gamo Romer; Don't Lose Your Soul, an exploration of Asian American jazz, from directors Jim Choi and Chihiro Wimbush; Honor & Sacrifice, which tells the story of the Matsumoto family, including one son who became a hero during World War II as part of Merrill’s Marauders, from directors Lucy Ostrander and Don Sellers; and Stories from Tohoku, which revisits the Tohoku region of Japan two years after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, from directors Dianne Fukami and Eli Olson and featuring Olympic Gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi.
Arab Labor Episode Wraps – In July, to help our viewers navigate some of the cultural nuances explored in season two of the Israeli comedy series, Arab Labor, KCETLink brought in two on-air hosts, Aron Kader and Naomi Ackerman, to offer different perspectives on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Kader is Palestinian American and Ackerman is a Jewish Israeli. On the Arab Labor page of the KCET website, we created a “Cultural Explainers” section (http://www.kcet.org/shows/arab_labor/cult ural-explainers/), where the two hosts contributed essays about their respective cultures and promoted understanding and a message of tolerance among Jews and Palestinians living in Israel.
LOCAL ONLINE PROGRAMMING
Departures – This award-winning online documentary series explores the cultures and pressing social issues affecting Los Angeles’ diverse neighborhoods. Each Departures installment is created in partnership with community organizations, as well as with local high school students, who undertake a rigorous, semester-long multimedia curriculum. In October 2011, Departures was honored with the prestigious Japan Foundation
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President’s Prize as part of the Japan Prize International Contest for Educational Media. The prize was given for “an excellent work that encourages mutual understanding among nations and races or contributes to cultural exchange.” Departures was one of 12 award-winners out of 313 entries from 61 countries/regions.
KCET.org Blogs – KCET has a team of seasoned web journalists who contribute articles to our rich array of regional blogs. Several of our blogs explore critical environmental issues in California: ReWire provides news and analysis about renewable energy in California; ReWild brings us stories about California’s wildlife, the threats they face and the value they bring us; The Back Forty offers opinions and news about environmental, land use, rural and wildlife issues; Confluence explores critical water use and access issues around the revitalization of the Los Angeles River; and SoCal Wanderer is a travelogue with a focus on California’s national and state parks and public spaces. Other KCET.org blogs include SoCal Focus, which provides news and perspectives about our region; KCET Food, which offers readers restaurant reviews, recipes and articles about agriculture, hunger issues and food justice; and LA as Subject, a Los Angeles history collaboration with the USC libraries.
PUBLIC SCREENINGS AND TAPINGS
Stand Up Planet Screening – In preparation for the on-air and online premiere of Stand Up Planet in May, KCETLink held a public screening event hosted by comedian Hasan Minhaj. Approximately 200 people attended the free event at the Downtown Independent movie theater, which featured a screening of the film followed by a Q&A with television legend Norman Lear, who discussed the value of pushing the boundaries in television to bring important societal issues to the public consciousness.
Arab Labor Community Screening – KCETLink partnered with the Levantine Cultural Center to present a community screening of episodes of the Israeli comedy series, Arab Labor, which launched on KCET in May. The screening was followed by a panel discussion with community organizations and experts on Arab/Israeli relations, including Jordan Elgrably (co-founder of the Levantine Cultural Center); Yigal Arens (professor at the Information Sciences Institute at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering); Aron Kader (Palestinian American comedian); and series star Clara Khoury. Community organizations in attendance included CAIR California (a chapter of the Council on American- Islamic Relations); CODEPINK; LA Jews for Peace; and Muslims for Progressive Values, among others.
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A Golden State of Mind Screening – In March, KCET participated in Chapman University’s launch of a documentary film about the life of KCET television personality Huell Howser. The event featured multiple screenings and a public forum for the new documentary, A Golden State of Mind: The Storytelling Genius of Huell Howser. The event also included an unveiling of Chapman's new exhibit: “That's Amazing! – 30 Years of Huell Howser and California's Gold”. KCET staff members were on hand to address questions from the public.
Space Racers Learning Event – In May, KCET partnered with the producers of the new preschool television series, Space Racers, for a special screening and educational event at the California Science Center that attracted more than 200 students from local schools. The animated Space Racers series follows young space cadets at the Stardust Space Academy as they soar through the Solar System. Young viewers learn about the power of scientific investigation and observation; the wonders of space exploration; and the importance of working together as a team, all with the help of fun and engaging characters. In addition to several screenings of episodes from the series, the Space Racers event featured the series director, voice talent and fun space-themed activities. Attendees learned how each character came to life, and how NASA scientists and astronauts assisted in the series’ development.
Artbound Presents Studio A Tapings – As part of its new concert performance series, Artbound Presents Studio A, in 2014 KCET held 21 public tapings featuring a diverse slate of bands and soloists performing live at its Burbank studios. Artists such as Jenny Lewis, Kan Wakan, LP, Nick Waterhouse, Rodrigo Amarante and Blake Mills performed live, and then were interviewed about their work, personal histories and cultural backgrounds. An average of 40 people attended each free performance.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH ACTIVITIES
Local Heroes 2014 – In 1998, KCET and Union Bank created the annual Local Heroes Awards in celebration of national commemorative heritage months, and to serve diverse communities throughout Los Angeles. The awards honor outstanding individuals who strive to enrich the lives of others, and whose tireless contributions are inspiring hope in the minds and hearts of future generations. To mark Black History Month in February; Women’s History Month in March; Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month and Jewish American Heritage Month in May; LGBT Pride Month in June; and Hispanic Heritage Month in September/October, we ask our viewers to nominate community leaders as Local Heroes. Then, in collaboration with the KCET Community Advisory Board and Union Bank executives, we select the honorees. The following are KCET and Union Bank’s 2014 Local Heroes:
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Black History Month Daryl L. Osby, first African American Los Angeles Fire Chief, youth mentor Anthony J. Tolbert, community activist who donates his house to families in need
Women's History Month Leslye Borden, founder of Handmade Especially for You, an organization that provides handmade “comfort” scarves as gifts to women who have suffered abuse Ann Reiss Lane, founder and Chair Emeritus of Women Against Gun Violence
Jewish American Heritage Month Naomi Ackerman, peace activist and founder and director of the Advot Project Daniel J. Lieber, chair and founder of the Holy Land Democracy Project, and renowned physician
Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month Kip Fulbeck, pioneering artist, filmmaker and author, and creator of The Hapa Project Alan Nishio, civic leader in the Southern California Japanese American community and President of the Board of Directors for the Little Tokyo Service Center
LGBT Pride Month Susan Feniger, chef, restaurateur, cookbook author and LGBT community activist Pastor Dan Hooper, LGBT rights activist and head pastor at Hollywood Lutheran Church
Hispanic Heritage Month Kathy Gallegos, founder and director of Avenue 50 Studio, a multicultural alternative art space in Highland Park Florencia Molina, advocate and founding member of the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking’s survival leadership program
During each of the heritage months throughout the year, we produced and broadcast honoree profiles, which were also posted on the “Local Heroes” page of the KCET website (www.kcet.org/socal/local_heroes/). We also hosted honoree dinners during each heritage month.
The Local Heroes year-long program culminated in November with an intimate event that welcomed all award recipients and their nominators to KCETLink’s Burbank studios to celebrate. A moving poem, “You Are Never Too Old to Be Young,” written by
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Gabriela Garcia Medina, was performed at the event and incorporated the accomplishments of all the honorees.
Local Heroes Broadcast Special – In December, KCET presented a special one-hour program on-air and online, Local Heroes Celebration 2014. Hosted by KCET journalist Val Zavala, the program celebrated the extraordinary contributions made by the outstanding community leaders who are making a difference in the region we serve.
Community Advisory Board – KCET works closely with its Community Advisory Board (CAB) to ensure that we are serving the needs of diverse populations across our region. In 2014, we convened CAB meetings in January, March, May and November, as well as a CAB retreat in August. CAB members are kept up-to-date on KCET programming and activities through press announcements, along with accompanying language as to how content and activities may impact their respective communities. Additionally, CAB members conduct an annual survey with their community networks, to ensure that community interests are being represented by KCET.
KCET 50th Anniversary Celebration – In 2014, KCET celebrated 50 years of serving Southern and Central California audiences with award-winning programming that reflects the vibrancy and unique cultural history of the region. With its new tagline, “Inspiring a Better State,” KCET marked the important 50-year milestone with a celebration that included a variety of multi-platform programming and public engagement activities.
KCET created an interactive online hub (www.kcet.org/50), where visitors can immerse themselves in KCET's rich half-century of history. The online hub features archived videos, photos and vibrant content by a host of columnists reflecting on KCET and its relationship to Los Angeles. The site also features an expanding, interactive timeline that allows visitors to learn about the station’s major milestones by the decade, in conjunction with important historical events in Los Angeles. A “Participate” page on the site encourages visitors to share ideas on how they “envision a better state.”
KCET also produced an original 50th anniversary broadcast special, featuring footage of defining moments from beloved specials and series, and interviews with important voices of KCET’s past and present, including Mayor Eric Garcetti, Bill Moyers, Val Zavala, Rubén Martínez, Patt Morrison, Taylor Hackford, Jesús Treviño, Jack Larson, Fritz Coleman and Dick Cook, among many others. The special also underscores KCET’s storied tradition of serving the local community through groundbreaking programming and events.
Community Kiosk Launch – In November, KCET launched an exciting public engagement activity that gives local residents the opportunity to become an active part of KCET’s 50th anniversary narrative. An interactive
KCETLink - CPB LCSR 2014 Page 10 of 14 kiosk, designed by local artist Melissa Castellano, serves as a travelling arts and education exhibit, appearing at cultural institutions and civic centers around Southern California. The kiosk prompts community members to answer the question: “How do you envision a better state?” Led by KCET’s Community Advisory Board (CAB), KCET will continue to collect community responses, which will coincide with the online campaign that engages viewers around the topic. In 2014, kiosk sites included the Rink in Downtown Burbank in November and California Plaza in Downtown Los Angeles for the event, “Orchestre Surréal Plays Music from The Nightmare Before Christmas”, in December. All responses from the kiosk site visits are posted on the KCET website at: www.kcet.org/participate. To date, 150 cards have been collected, with responses ranging from “Improved Public Transportation” and “Better Public Schools” to “Greater Use of Alternative Energy Sources” and “Improved Services for the Homeless.”
Additional 50th Anniversary Activities – To commemorate KCET’s 50th anniversary, the California State Assembly, the Cities of Burbank and Los Angeles, and Los Angeles County awarded the station special proclamations. Also, in April KCET’s Vice President of News & Public Affairs and anchor for SoCal Connected, Val Zavala, was a featured VIP dignitary in the 2014 Burbank on Parade, which featured the theme: “Burbank: City of the Future”. Thousands of spectators from Burbank and our neighboring cities came out to celebrate the day. In October, KCET participated in USC's annual Los Angeles Archives Bazaar at the Doheny Library, where numerous organizations, historical groups and universities gather to share historical archival material for public display. The event is attended by LA history buffs, writers, academics and anyone interested in local history. KCET had a special display at the event, with KCET staff members Ariel Carpenter, Ayn Allen and Elson Trinidad engaging attendees with KCET’s 50-year history in the community through archival photos and videos.
NELA Event – In June, KCET and the Northeast Los Angeles Riverfront Collaborative (NELA RC) hosted an open house to unveil a riverfront vision plan for Northeast Los Angeles. The vision plan was produced in collaboration with community residents and stakeholders, through a series of community planning and engagement activities led by
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KCET. A digital version of the 242-page vision plan is housed on the KCET website at: http://www.kcet.org/socal/departures/nela/.
Departures Youth Voices Activities – In 2014, KCET’s Departures Youth Voices civic engagement and media literacy program worked with youth in Northeast Los Angeles (Los Angeles River School, Los Feliz Charter School for the Arts); Boyle Heights (Weingart YMCA Youth Institute); El Monte (Mountain View and Arroyo High Schools); and South El Monte (South El Monte High School). Students were engaged in a process of youth participatory action, selecting and investigating community causes that were important to them. They published articles at: www.kcet.org/youthvoices that detailed their progress and advocated for their causes through public presentations and social media. Students from the Los Angeles River School submitted projects to the Northeast Los Angeles Placemaking Competition and won Honorable Mention (Cypress Park) and the top prize for a submission re-envisioning a vacant lot in Glassell Park. Youth Voices staff also conducted educational events at Pasadena Community College, and took part in a Connected Learning Webinar series on the subject of Storytelling & Digital Age Civics.
ONLINE ENGAGEMENT
Artbound Voting – A central component of KCET’s Emmy-Award winning arts and culture series, Artbound, is online voting from viewers. Every week, website visitors are asked to vote on their choice of the most compelling web articles. They can choose between the Editor’s Choice and the People’ Choice, and the top vote-getter will then be produced into a short-form video documentary to be featured on the Artbound site (www.kcet.org/artbound). Every other month, Artbound producers compile the best online videos into an hour-long broadcast episode. Through this unique production model, viewers are directly involved in curating what content ends up on KCET’s air. The process has proven so successful that we have applied a similar voting model to our new world music video compilation series, Border Blaster. Viewers can create their own mixes on the Border Blaster site (http://www.kcet.org/shows/borderblaster/), which then influence the mixes that we broadcast on the Border Blaster broadcast series.
Departures: Participate – KCET’s online Departures series engages local residents by asking for their ideas and feedback on a range of topics and social issues (at www.kcet.org/participate). People can take part in discussions, share perspectives, take up a social cause, and share the wants and desires of their community – from students exploring how to improve a vacant lot, to a design collaboration soliciting project ideas for public spaces. Current questions featured on the “Participate” page include: “How can social media raise awareness about teen dating abuse?”; “How would you improve the 710 Corridor?”; “How can a school music program enhance student academic and social success?”; and “What can be done to strengthen a sense of place in your community?”
Huell Howser Fan Favorite Initiative – To mark the one-year anniversary since his passing in January 2013, fans of late legendary television personality Huell Howser
KCETLink - CPB LCSR 2014 Page 12 of 14 went to www.kcet.org/huellvote and voted on five of their favorite episodes from the top 50 shows from the Visiting…With Huell Howser and California’s Gold series. More than 6,600 votes were cast, and the most popular shows were presented as a special tribute that included a Huell Howser marathon airing on KCET in January 2014.
Doc Martin Trivia Contest – To celebrate the launch of season six of the British comedy series, Doc Martin (one the highest-rated shows on KCET), the station held a Doc Martin trivia contest on KCET.org. The contest winner received tea for two at The Langham Hotel in Pasadena.
STUDIO TOURS AND VISITS
In 2014, KCET hosted a group of eight journalists from Azerbaijan through our partnership with the International Visitors Council of Los Angeles (IVCLA), a non-profit organization that implements the US Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program of professional and cultural exchanges. Vice President of Communications Ariel Carpenter and SoCal Connected digital executive producer Zach Behrens spoke with the group about the organization’s mission and programming, and its award-winning news program, SoCal Connected.
KCET TALENT IN THE COMMUNITY
Val Zavala – Emmy Award-winning SoCal Connected anchor Val Zavala has long been committed to a variety of community engagement activities throughout Southern and Central California. In 2014, she participated in the following events:
February 2014 – Mount St. Mary’s “Ready to Run” conference focused on getting more women in politics. Presentation on being camera-ready. Chalon campus in Brentwood. February 2014 – Moderated a panel on hunger (following a movie on Mother Teresa) for St. Vincent Meals on Wheels. Caruso Center at USC. February 2014 – Emceed the 211 LA County luncheon. 211 is a non-profit organization connecting thousands of residents to county services with one call to 211. Cathedral Plaza in Downtown Los Angeles. March 2014 – Attended THE MUSES luncheon. THE MUSES support and promote the California Science Center Foundation and its education programs for youth. Interviewed this year’s Woman of the Year honoree, Gwynne Shotwell, President & COO of SpaceX. California Club, Los Angeles. May 2014 – Emceed Cal Poly Pomona’s 75th Anniversary Event. June 2014 – Emceed the Mexican American Bar Association Foundation Gala. Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles. June 2014 – Participated in Town Hall Los Angeles public speakers’ forum. Conducted conversation with Los Angeles City Controller Ron Galperin. July 2014 – Emceed Lawyers for the Arts fundraising awards reception.
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October 2014 – Moderated Women’s Leadership Conference at Woodbury University. October 2014 – Moderated panel discussion after a screening of the documentary film, American Winter, at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. November 2014 – Moderated a day-long conference for the California Contract Cities Association on water issues. November 2014 – Moderated a panel for Cal State LA's Edmund G. “Pat” Brown Institute on Public Affairs on the California water shortage.
Juan Devis – KCET’s Senior Vice President of Content Development & Production, Juan Devis, engages with the creative community in the region on a consistent basis. His public appearances in 2014 included the following:
Annenberg Alchemy+ training The Annenberg Foundation meeting Boeing convening at the Skirball Cultural Center California Community Foundation El Monte meeting California Council for the Humanities meeting The California Endowment Building Health Communities convenings, meetings, conference, innovation/creation brainstorming session and Local Hispanic Heroes dinner Cal Humanities meeting CCTV Anhui Province presentation De LaB speaking event on the Los Angeles River Interview with Eric Garcetti, Mayor of Los Angeles Leadership LA seminar on arts, culture and entertainment in Los Angeles Los Angeles City College grantee reception and Microsoft meeting Los Feliz Charter School for the Arts meeting Johnny Mercer Foundation meeting National Endowment for the Arts review and media panel Northeast Los Angeles Riverfront Collaborative meetings and celebration event Occidental College – “Oxy Videotheque: Electronic Art & Activism 1967-2014” Pearson Foundation / Boeing meeting Interview with Ed Reyes, Chair of the Los Angeles River Ad Hoc Committee Television Academy / Los Angeles Peer Group executive meeting University of Southern California lecture US-Japan Council meeting
John Mazur – KCET’s Senior Account Executive of KCETLink Studios & Productions, John Mazur, also represented the organization at community events in 2014, including the following:
September 2014 – Spoke at Chapman University at multiple screenings and a public forum for the new documentary film, A Golden State of Mind: The
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Storytelling Genius of Huell Howser. November 2014 – Spotlight Speaker at the Burbank Chamber of Commerce monthly Business-to-Business Luncheon at the Castaway, Burbank.
CONCLUSION
KCET is proud to continue its critical role as a public media partner to the diverse communities of Southern and Central California. We are committed to enlightening, inspiring, informing and entertaining our constituents, and to helping foster a better future for our region. As the newly merged KCETLink, we are launching innovative initiatives across multiple distribution platforms, and broadening and deepening our community impact.