Art of "self-help hucksters" explained

Vermont PTV's Ann Curran describes the art of pledge programming to a Burlington Free Press writer who can't tell the difference between Suze Orman and Christiane Northrup.

Hispanic caucus presses PBS on "The War"

Leaders of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus met with public TV executives on Tuesday to discuss their concerns about the absence of Latino-American veterans in The War, Ken Burns' 14-hour World War II documentary series slated for a PBS debut in September. Lawmakers may try to restrict pubTV's federal funding if PBS doesn't address their concerns, according to Politico, a newspaper and website covering the Washington, D.C., political scene. "The bottom line is we also have the right to do what we can economically with PBS to show our displeasure," said Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas). "I hope it won't come to that."

Kartemquin Films honored by MacArthur Foundation

The MacArthur Foundation named Chicago's Kartemquin Films, a frequent pubTV producer, as one of this year's eight recipients of its MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. The Chronicle of Philanthropy profiles Kartemquin, headed by co-founder Gordon Quinn. The company is known for Hoop Dreams, Refrigerator Mothers and the series The New Americans, among other social documentaries.