Downloads: Media Alert
New York, NY, April 17, 2008 — During this election season, POV wants to know what your point of view is. As a leading broadcaster of social-issue documentary films, POV is partnering with NPR, WGHB Lab, and Film Your Issue to encourage talented young visionaries to produce work that will address issues related to the elections. POV’s Why Vote? website, www.pbs.org/pov/whyvote, launches with a look at the environment and the Webby Award-winning POV’s Borders | Environment site, and features films from POV’s new season beginning Tuesday, June 24 on PBS that explore critical issues during this election year: voting and election reform in Election Day, immigration and border security in The Ballad of Esequiel Hernandez, the art of campaigning in Campaign, health care in Critical Condition and conscientious objectors in Soldiers of Conscience. (See schedule at www.pbs.org/pov.)
On Why Vote? 2008, POV expands the popular site developed for the 2004 election with interactive quizzes, activities and polls; user-generated video about the issues motivating Americans to visit the ballot box this November collected in partnership with NPR, Film Your Issue and the WGBH Lab; links to conversations, debates and other thoughtful posts in the blogosphere about voting and democracy; and more.
POV and its partners are looking for diverse voices that represent all aspects of our citizenry in short videos that are relevant to the 2008 election.
- NPR’s Get My Vote partnership — Politics is personal, and Get My Vote is an opportunity to connect and share the beliefs, issues and ideas that matter most to you as you prepare to vote in the 2008 elections. Anything that you submit and tag "POV" at www.pbs.org/pov/whyvote will be available on NPR’s Get My Vote site, as well as featured in the "What’s Your POV?" section of POV’s Election 2008 site.
- The WGBH Lab Open Call: Election 2008 — Filmmakers are invited to submit ideas for a compelling short film related to the upcoming election by May 2. The WGBH Lab will post video pitches, invite the public to vote for their favorites and choose the top ideas for production. As filmmakers complete their shorts, POV staff, industry professionals and site users will post comments and suggestions. Selected film proposals will receive $2,000 in support, be featured at www.pbs.org/pov and may be broadcast on PBS.
- Film Your Issue 2008 partnership — From February 6-April 14, POV and Film Your Issue 2008 solicited short films produced by young people (ages 14-24) on the issues most important to them in the upcoming election. The selection phase is in progress with the winning film to be announced on May 2. The film will be posted on the POV website and considered for inclusion in a POV Broadcast. In addition, the winning filmmaker will be eligible for a paid internship at POV this summer.
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About POV
Produced by American Documentary, Inc. and celebrating its 21st season on PBS in 2008, the award-winning POV series is the longest-running showcase on television to feature the work of America’s best contemporary-issue independent filmmakers. Airing Tuesdays at 10 p.m., June through October, with primetime specials during the year, POV has brought more than 250 award-winning documentaries to millions nationwide. Since 1988, POV has pioneered the art of presentation and outreach using independent nonfiction media to build new communities in conversation about today’s most pressing social issues.
POV Interactive (www.pbs.org/pov)
POV’s award-winning Web department produces special features for every POV presentation, extending the life of our films through filmmaker interviews, story updates, podcasts, streaming video, and community-based and educational content. POV Interactive also produces our Web-only showcase for interactive storytelling, POV’s Borders, and the POV Blog, a gathering place for documentary fans and filmmakers to discuss their favorite films, get the latest news and link to further resources. The POV Website, blog and film archives form a unique and extensive online resource for documentary storytelling.
Major funding for POV is provided by PBS, The John D. and Catherine T.MacArthur Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, The Educational Foundation of America, The Fledgling Fund, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, The September 11th Fund, and public television viewers. Funding for POV’s Diverse Voices Project is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. POV is presented by a consortium of public television stations, including KCET Los Angeles, WGBH Boston and Thirteen/WNET New York.