How can a handful of words, scribbled on a napkin or a train schedule, grow into a timeless play? How does a storyteller create characters with lives and intentions of their own? Is writing a miraculous act, impossible to explain or describe, or is it 90 percent perspiration? In this program, a chorus of famous authors discuss creative strategies that lead to emotionally charged stories and dramatic narratives. The video weaves together rarely seen...

This program chronicles the golden years of network news and the birth of the satellite age, as "going live" became the order of the day and anchormen and anchorwomen became mega-stars. We watch as television news becomes a force in foreign policy in Tiananmen Square and at the Berlin Wall, as images are used to affect the tide of public opinion. Shortsighted competitors predict little success for television mogul Ted Turner's new international news...

Paul O’Brien is an entrepreneur, startup consultant, and founder of MediaTech Ventures. Why he says the future is now—and how his secrets could be the key to getting your next big idea funded, whether it’s VC, sponsorship, or grant—Paul breaks down the startup ecosystem as it relates to media and technology. Plus, John and Paul discuss the ever-changing role of today’s CMO, and why data should be at the top of every marketer’s mind. Filmed...

Caused both by humans and by nature, disasters have played an unforgettable part in the history of the 20th century. This program contains footage of the 1937 Hindenburg disaster at Lakehurst, the 1940 Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse, and the aftermath of Pan Am flight 103's mid-air explosion over Lockerbie and the 1998 high-speed train crash at Eschede. Clips of natural catastrophes include flooding in New England; hurricanes in Florida; avalanches...

Bertram Poppingstock is as determined as ever to save the world from his latest archrival: an evil media mogul manipulating the news to serve her own diabolical agenda. Want to become a savvier consumer of popular media? From sensationalized hard news to human interest stories and gossip columns, you’ll soon be an expert on techniques used to deliver news and entertainment in print and electronic media.

"This ... work of nonfiction explores the philosophy of a new mass movement of truth-tellers; its ethics, impacts on privacy, guidelines about deception, the discovery process of litigation, and the tension between secrecy and transparency--compiled from over a decade of investigative reporting coupled with a vast reference of philosophical research that pertains to the trials and tribulations of an American Muckraker in the information age"--Flap...

This program takes us on a tour of what has become one of the most popular and prolific beats in television, on both the network and local levels. The depth and range of medical reporting have grown considerably in the last decade, but, with few exceptions, we were tragically late in reporting the scope and severity of the AIDS story. Controversial cures and dubious wonder drugs have always gotten lots of air-time, but television has dallied in addressing...

Behind every calmly delivered TV news report is an untold story of on-the-spot decisions, unexpected delays, and last-minute changes. Add to that tension the dangers of working in a war zone and the nightly news becomes quite a drama indeed. In this program, ABC News correspondents, camera operators, producers, and others explain what it takes to record events in dangerous locales such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Israel and then broadcast...

The footage has been shot and the clock is ticking. How does a television news reporter put together an interesting and informative story in today's hurry-up media marketplace? This program discusses the steps involved in preparing reports for the TV news: logging tapes; structuring the story; editing, including the techniques and relative benefits of linear and nonlinear editing; writing commentary; and creating a soundtrack. On-screen lists of key...