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AIR TIMES AND PROGRAM SUMMARIES
CNN Presents: Black in America
The Black Woman & Family
Encore: Wednesday, Feb. 25, at 8 p.m. ET
The Black Man
Encore: Thursday, Feb. 26, at 8 p.m. ET
CNN & Essence: Reclaiming the Dream
Saturday, July 19, at 8 p.m.
Eyewitness to Murder – The King Assassination
Thursday, April 3, at 9 p.m.
Premiere: Wednesday, July 23 – 9pm, 12am (TRT: 2 hours)
Forty years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., is Dr. King’s dream still alive? CNN’s groundbreaking documentary series Black in America continues in July with The Black Woman & Family. Anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien explores the varied experiences of black women and families and investigates the reasons behind the disturbing statistics on single parenthood, disparities between black and white students in the classroom and the devastating toll of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in black communities. O’Brien reports on the progress of black women in the workplace, in universities and the status of the black middle class. This two-hour documentary also includes insights and perspectives from experts including economist and Bennett College President Julianne Malveaux, Essence magazine editor Angela Burt-Murray, Dallas-based preacher and life coach Bishop T.D. Jakes, TV/radio personality and motivational speaker Michael Baisden. The Black in America series is filmed in high definition.
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Premiere: Thursday, July 24 – 9pm, 12am (TRT: 2 hours)
Forty years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., CNN’s groundbreaking documentary series Black in America continues in July. In The Black Man, anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien evaluates the state of black men in America and whether there are two Black Americas – success for some but challenges for far too many more. Examining the personal stories of members of the 1968 class of Little Rock, Ark.’s Central High School – and those of their sons and grandsons – O’Brien explores the controversial topics of black men and fatherhood; disparities between blacks and whites in educational, career and financial achievement; and factors leading to the dramatic rates of black male incarceration. Also looking closely at the achievements of black men and the importance of the positive influences of black fathers, O’Brien dispels many myths and stereotypes and discusses whether life is better for black men now than it was at the end of the Civil Rights era. Is Dr. King’s dream still alive? The Black in America series is filmed in high definition.
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CNN & Essence: Reclaiming the Dream
Premiere: Saturday, July 19 – 8pm, 12am, 4am (TRT: 90 min)
CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien moderates an all-star panel
to discuss the most pressing concerns for Black America today. Filmed at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans over the 2008 July Fourth Weekend, Reclaiming the Dream, brought together Harvard University professor Roland Fryer, Black Enterprise’s Ed Gordon, actor/author Hill Harper, Bishop T.D. Jakes, economist and Bennett College President Julianne Malveaux, Princeton University professor Cornell West, actress/activist Sheryl Lee Ralph, Chicago Urban League President Cheryle Jackson, Excellence Charter School Principal Jabali Sawicki for a lively, solutions-oriented
forum to discuss the state of black families, broken educational infrastructure, the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS upon black families, and a look at the next generation of leadership in Black America.
Eyewitness to Murder – The King Assassination
Program Summary:
“King has been shot at the Lorraine…” a police broadcast announced on April 4, 1968. Eyewitness to Murder – The King Assassination opens with the urgent call to search for “a young white male, possibly in a late-model white Mustang” fleeing the scene after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot on the balcony in front of Room No. 306 of the Lorraine Motel. Reported by CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien, this two-hour documentary traces the evidence and investigates the lingering questions left after the murder of an American martyr.
O’Brien describes how escaped convict and armed robber James Earl Ray had already spent an uncommon year on the run that included plastic surgery the month before his path collided with that of the civil rights trailblazer, who had come to Memphis, Tenn. to help striking garbage workers. While local police provided a security escort for King on a previous visit, this time there was none because King’s local supporters turned it down because of a previous clash with police. The FBI was harassing King, having labeled him as "the most dangerous Negro" and sent him threatening letters. Military intelligence attempted to spy on King from a nearby rooftop.
Ray was captured two months later after a transatlantic getaway that ended in London on June 8, 1968, as he was attempting to escape to southern Africa. Ray pleaded guilty the following year to the assassination, although he retracted his confession two weeks later and would never again admit responsibility for the killing.
CNN has interviewed dozens of first-person witnesses to events surrounding the assassination. They include a minister who was the only person on the balcony with King and a fireman who may be the only living eyewitness who saw the civil rights leader at the moment he was shot. Among those also speaking to CNN are King’s closest aide, former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young; James Earl Ray’s brother, Jerry; and James Earl Ray’s first and last defense attorneys. CNN explores alternative scenarios of what may have happened on that fateful day.
This first installment in CNN’s groundbreaking series, Black in America, is produced by a team of award-winning journalists including Mark Nelson, senior executive producer and vice president for CNN Productions, and Pulitzer Prize-winning senior producer James Polk, who has been covering aspects of the assassination for nearly 40 years, including the House Select Committee on Assassinations hearings. Black in America continues in July 2008 with a look at the issues, challenges and achievements of African Americans in The Black Woman & Family and The Black Man. The Black in America
series is filmed in high definition.
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