New York, NY – April 2, 2014 – Two films that had their national broadcast premieres on PBS’s POV (Point of View) series, Best Kept Secret and The Law in These Parts, have won George Foster Peabody Awards, it was announced today by the University of Georgia. A record 46 recipients, chosen by the Peabody board from almost 1,100 entries, comprise the best in electronic media for the year 2013. PBS won 12 awards, more than any other organization.
The Peabody Awards, established in 1940 and administered by UGA’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, are the oldest honor in electronic media. The 73rd Annual Peabody Awards will be formally presented on May 19 at a luncheon ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. Ira Glass, host and producer of “This American Life,” will be the emcee.
POV, which begins its 27th season on PBS on Monday, June 23, 2014, is American television’s longest-running independent documentary series. POV is the winner of a Special Emmy for Excellence in Television Documentary Filmmaking two IDA Awards for Best Continuing Series and a MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. POV films have won 17 Peabody Awards, three Academy Awards®, 32 Emmy Awards® and 12 duPont-Columbia Awards.
Best Kept Secret: At a public school in Newark, N.J., the staff answers the phone by saying, “You’ve reached John F. Kennedy High School, Newark’s best-kept secret.” JFK provides an exceptional environment for students with special needs. In Best Kept Secret, teacher Janet Mino is on an urgent mission. She races against the clock as graduation approaches for her severely autistic minority students. Once they graduate and leave the security of this nurturing place, their options for living independently will be few. Mino must help them find the means to support themselves before they “age out” of the system.
Credits: Director: Samantha Buck; Producer: Danielle DiGiacomo; Executive Producers: Paul Bernon, Sean Curran, Daniella Kahane, Scott Mosier; Co-Producers: Samantha Buck, Zeke Farrow; Cinematographer: Nara Garber; Editor: Francisco Bello.
The Law in These Parts examines of the system of military administration used by Israel since the Six Day War of 1967. In a series of thoughtful and candid interviews, Israeli judges, prosecutors and legal advisers, who helped devise the legal framework, paint a complex picture of the Middle East conflict and the balance among political interests, security and human rights that has come with it. Winner, World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary, 2012 Sundance Film Festival.
Credits: Director: Ra’anan Alexandrowicz; Producer: Liran Atzmor; Co-Producer: B.Z. Goldberg; Cinematographer: Shark De Mayo; Editor: Neta Dvorkis.
POV series credits: Executive Producer: Simon Kilmurry; Co-Executive Producer: Cynthia López; Vice President, Production and Programming: Chris White; Coordinating Producer: Andrew Catauro.
POV
POV has brought more than 365 acclaimed 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. Visit www.pbs.org/pov for more information. Follow POV @povdocs.
Major funding for POV is provided by PBS, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Bertha Foundation, Wyncote Foundation, The Educational Foundation of America, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, Ann Tenenbaum and Thomas H. Lee, and public television viewers. POV is presented by a consortium of public television stations, including KQED San Francisco, WGBH Boston and THIRTEEN in association with WNET.ORG.
Contacts:
POV Communications: 212-989-7425, Communications@pov.org
POV online pressroom: www.pbs.org/pov/pressroom
