Writers and Censorship

TV Ontario

Authors Salman Rushdie and Taslima Nasrin know about severe censorship firsthand. In this program, Suanne Kelman, of Ryerson University, opens the subject of censoring in literature using Huckleberry Finn, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lady Chatterley’s Lover, The Diviners, and the Harry Potter series—all banned at one time or another or under threat of banning—as examples. Expanding on the theme, Rushdie (The Satanic Verses) then talks about fundamentalist Muslim sensibilities, living under a fatwa, and the writer’s role in the world, while Nasrin (Lajja) discusses patriarchal oppression of women, her escape from Bangladesh, and life in exile. (27 minutes)

The Media and Human Rights: Rights & Wrongs—Human Rights Television

The Global Center

A drop in popularity of the Hungarian conservative political party Fidesz led to charges of liberal bias on the part of the media there. The media became a scapegoat for the defeat of the party in the 1994 parliamentary elections. This episode explores the lack of media independence in post-communist Hungary and the neo-conservative’s attempt to control public television and radio. Andrew Tyndall reports on how the media covers itself. Also featured are reports on the growing number of journalists who are killed while on assignment and a profile of Belgrade’s B-92, a radio station that mixes music with anti-war activism in Serbia’s capital. Part of the series Rights & Wrongs: Human Rights Television. Original broadcast title: The Media and Human Rights, Show #209. (26 minutes)

Freedom of Expression Must Include the License to Offend: A Debate (UK version)

Intelligence2 Ltd.

As valued as it is, the principle of free speech through which everyone can have their say is an especially slippery slope as populations grow more pluralistic and the desire to get along creates pressure to curtail any expression that may potentially insult some portion of the people. Must freedom of expression include the license to offend? That is the question in this Oxford Union-style debate as panelists make their case. Speakers for the motion bring up the pernicious effects of censorship, the suppression of healthy debate, and repressiveness that can lead to authoritarianism, while those against speak of freedom of speech as a means to an end rooted in a particular place and time, rather than as an ideal, and stress the value to society of outlawing expression such as child pornography. Questions from the floor follow. The final vote? Significantly for. BBC One O’Clock News presenter Anna Ford presides. (109 minutes)

Watch What You Say: Free Speech in Times of National Crisis

Nightline

In America, freedom of speech is a cherished fundamental right. Must it be curtailed during emergencies or wars? In this program, ABC News anchor Ted Koppel and correspondent John Donvan explore the penalties of political dissent in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. News footage and a round table discussion with media personalities, journalists, and others who have suffered the consequences of voicing unpopular opinions reveal a disturbing yet unsurprising intolerance for such comments during a period of national crisis. (44 minutes)

Battle over the Books: Censorship in American Schools

Ivanhoe Communications

John Scopes went on trial for teaching Darwin's theory of evolution; nearly 70 years later, an Illinois English teacher was confronted by protesters who demanded that J. D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye "not be assigned for reading"-adding that their demand should not be interpreted as "censorship or banning books." Whatever it's called, it means that books are under attack-from "Cinderella" to Huckleberry Finn. This program looks at how teachers can prepare themselves against attack, and looks at those who, in the name of religion or equality or whatever cause, are aiming the censor's gun at teachers and books. (20 minutes)

European Extremists: A Continent Wrestles with Hate

Java Films

Nationalist, populist, and xenophobic movements are becoming significant political forces across Europe, with some gaining enough support to win parliamentary seats. This investigation traverses the continent and goes into the heart of extreme right-wing organizations for a frightening look into what can happen when fear, ignorance, and racism intersect. Viewers are taken to a German village dominated by nostalgia for the Third Reich, and to Hungary, where tattooed thugs conduct terrifying “patrols” of Roma areas. In France, the Bloc Identitaire exploits modern technology to spread a message of hate and fear, while across the channel, the English Defense League draws crowds of unruly supporters—all seemingly oblivious to the irony that they have become the type of fundamentalists they stand against. Contains harsh language. (57 minutes)

Innovate: Japan

CNN

Will Ripley explores how Japan is adapting to new challenges and using technology to find solutions for its aging population and beyond.

Spreading Hate: The Dark Side of the Internet

CNN

An in depth look at hate in the 21st century. America’s recent rise in hate crimes sparked this in-depth look at all the possible reasons why.

On China: Censorship

CNN

This month On China delves into the issue of Censorship in China - what's taboo in the country, and what’s not? We explore how netizens in China are working around banned content, President’s Xi’s stance on “internet sovereignty” and what the greater impact is on a thriving global internet market.

Trigger Warning: Safe Spaces Are Dangerous: A Debate

Open to Debate

Long hailed as bastions of intellectual freedom where ideas and opinions are openly exchanged, universities have recently come under attack by those who claim that a new generation of students and administrators are restricting speech in the name of inclusion and political correctness. At the heart of this debate is the question of "safe spaces"—places where students can be free of racist, sexist, or other derogatory speech. Such places, some argue, provide a refuge from bigotry and oppression by allowing students the opportunity to express themselves in an empathetic and civil environment. But others argue that, however well-intended, safe spaces threaten free speech and undermine the resilience of people who will face controversial issues in the larger world. Are safe spaces a legitimate and necessary component of modern education, or are they a misguided concept that coddles young minds? Are safe spaces dangerous?

The Hidden Art of Islam

PBS

Muslim belief and tradition specifies that there should be no depictions of God or the Prophet Muhammad. In religious contexts, this constraint on what artists can depict extends to human figures and other living creatures as well. These prohibitions have inspired a rich visual culture based on calligraphy, Arabesque floral designs, and geometry, all of which feature strongly in the art and design found throughout Islam.

National Security and Freedom of the Press

Annenberg Learner

What right does the public have to know about national security issues? Former CIA director and secretary of defense James Schlesinger, former attorney general Griffin Bell and others debate the issue.

Youtubeland Like & Subscribe

NPO/Netherlands Public Broadcasting

YouTube is travelling like a high-speed train into one of the most powerful online platforms in the world. Nowadays nearly every child dreams of becoming rich and famous on the video platform. Which clever earnings model is hiding behind this success story, and how will this affect our future media landscape? A number of professional YouTubers offer a glimpse in the wondrous world of the YouTube industry.

How Islam Built the Modern World

TVF International

The foundations for our extraordinary high-tech world don’t just come from the West, but from Islamic and Arabic speaking scientists of the Middle Ages. Dr. Hayat Sindi and Professor Jim Al-Khalili trace the stories behind the genesis and development of the car, flight, robotics and algorithms; the technology that transformed astronomy, farming, hospitals and surgery; and the creation of the world’s first university.

The Man who Found a Viable Alternative to Plastic (Make It Count)

Million Stories, a project of the Singleton Foundation

A frightening fact: By 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean. In fact, plastics have seeped into all corners of the environment. In addition to the larger wrappers, bags, and bottles that litter the land and oceans, microplastics pollute less obvious places, including Antarctic ice, Colorado rainwater, and our own bodies. But now, Newlight Technologies and its co-founder and CEO Mark Herrema aim to change all that, and put an end to plastic as we know it. They’ve spent nearly 20 years developing a sustainable, ocean-degradable biomaterial made from a biopolymer that’s produced by bacteria in the ocean. Carbon-neutral and already in production, it’s a big step forward in saving our planet.

Impressing Their Friends

American Public Television (APT)

On a diet of Coca-Cola, pizza, hard rock music, and very little sleep, guys like Steve Jobs, BillGates, and Steve Wozniak, invented the personal computer. They did it to impress their friends.But they ended up launching a revolution that changed the world, made Apple a billion-dollarcompany and turned nerds into millionaires.

Digital Africa

Albatross World Sales

This documentary challenges conventional perceptions of Africa. With fiber internet access, and a blossoming start-up scene, Africa is a hotbed of technological innovation and entrepreneurship. Our host travels to Kenya, Rwanda, and Ghana to explore digital inventions and innovations, meet creators and pioneers, and discover the application of new developments from tablets in schools to solar-powered mobile kiosks to drones and blockchain.

A Greener Future by 2025 is within Arm's Reach: Here’s How (Make It Count)

Million Stories, a project of the Singleton Foundation

Transportation without oil? That’s the driving idea behind Dimensional Energy, a company that’s using artificial photosynthesis to produce the raw materials for products like jet fuel. As a finalist in the $20 million Carbon X Prize competition, the startup is in the early stages of showing how recycling CO2 into sustainable fuels could significantly reduce global emissions while also creating a massively profitable industry. Dimensional Energy’s approach to decarbonization could help drastically reduce the environmental damage caused by the aviation industry, which accounts for 2% of human-induced CO2 emissions worldwide.

Moyers & Company: Big Media's Power Play

Doctoroff Media Group

In 1983, 50 corporations controlled a majority of American media. Now that number is six. And Big Media may get even bigger, due to the FCC’s consideration of ending a rule preventing companies from owning a newspaper and radio and TV stations in the same big city. Such a move would give these massive media companies free rein to devour more of the competition, control the public message, and further limit diversity across the media landscape. In this edition of Moyers & Company, Senator Bernie Sanders—one of several senators who have written FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski asking him to suspend the plan—joins Bill to discuss why Big Media is a threat to democracy and what citizens can do to fight back. Broadcast date: December 7, 2012. (25 minutes)

You Can't Say That! Politically Correct Free Speech

ABC News

Who determines when one person's right to expression must give way to another's sense of propriety? In this program, ABC News correspondent John Stossel looks at growing constraints on free speech made in the interest of protecting the public from offense. Using such controversial examples as the worker who was fired for telling a joke he heard on a popular prime-time TV show, Mr. Stossel considers the paranoia throughout the academic, political, and business sectors that has led to the creation of virtual "speech police" armed with special forms of censorship and "sensitivity training." A topic of perennial debate, freedom of speech receives a timely evaluation in this report. (43 minutes)

This Day In History: September 19, 1985 – Tipper Gore and Other "Washington Wives" Form the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC)

The WPA Film Library

Parents Music Resource Center is formed.

Sex, Censorship, and the Silver Screen: From the Depression to WWII

Sex and the Silver Screen

In what many see as Hollywood's Golden Age, the offices of William Hays and Joseph Breen worked overtime to combat sexuality and subversion in American movies. This program examines the products of that era-films that danced around the standards of the Production Code and paved the way for increasingly daring storytelling and images. From the modesty of It Happened One Night to the shocking and nearly prohibited use of "damn" in Gone with the Wind to the ambiguous morality of Double Indemnity, the program surveys the achievements of Clark Gable, Hedy Lamarr, Errol Flynn, Lana Turner, Rita Hayworth, Jane Russell, Cecil B. DeMille, Frank Capra, Billy Wilder, Preston Sturges, and other screen artists. The forces that led to Hays's dismissal and the weakening of the Code are discussed in depth. (72 minutes)

Sex, Censorship, and the Silver Screen: The Late 1960s to the '90s

Sex and the Silver Screen

In 1965, the Catholic Legion of Decency closed its doors; the following year, the Hays Code was scrapped. This program looks at the cinematic milestones which prompted these events and the age of freewheeling film artistry that ensued, despite attempts at censorship issuing from the highest political level. Shedding light on the release of The Pawnbroker and director Sidney Lumet’s historic confrontation with the Legion, the program showcases the forging of the MPAA rating system and the eventual association of the “X” classification with pornography—notwithstanding the artistic triumphs of Midnight Cowboy and A Clockwork Orange. The impact of AIDS, the struggle against child pornography, and the creation of the NC-17 rating are also illuminated. (62 minutes)

Orhan Pamuk

Danish Broadcasting Corporation

Refuting any connection with overt political goals, Turkish novelist and Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk aims to create stories “as a child, not knowing where I am going next.” Yet few writers in the Islamic world are more closely associated with political strife or have sparked as much street-level anger. This program features an interview with the world-renowned author in his Istanbul office, bringing to light his insights into art, oppression, and the interaction between East and West. Subjects include the role of storytelling in shaping human values, Pamuk’s depiction of Islamic teenagers in the novel Snow, and his reaction to Don DeLillo’s assertions about the relevance of violence and terror. (29 minutes)

The Bill of Rights: A Living Document

Cambridge Educational

Brief animations introduce key issues in this look back at the Bill of Rights. A host weaves together past and present, while civics experts explore the complexity of the issue of individual rights versus common good. Related topics include hate speech, school newspapers, random drug testing, gun control, and terrorism. Historical segments discuss Colonial Militias, the Intolerable Acts, Freedom of Worship, the Rights of Accused Persons, and the origins of the individual rights concept. A Cambridge Educational Production. (23 minutes)

Kefauver Committee Investigates Organized Crime ca. 1951

British Pathe

The Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in Interstate Commerce, headed by Senator Estes Kefauver (D, TN), was the largest effort to expose organized crime in U.S. history. Frank Erickson, who was indicted on charges of gambling, invoked the Fifth Amendment to avoid answering questions. Frank Costello, one of the most notorious Mafia figures of the day, also refused to answer any questions, citing illness. Despite Costello's silence, the televised investigations drew national attention to his influence in government affairs. Copyright The WPA Film Library.

Moyers on America: The Net @ Risk

Doctoroff Media Group

A boon to computer users, broadband has meant fast Internet service for millions. But as the phone and cable giants that operate these networks consider the profits to be made by controlling the content and delivery of the Internet, Net neutrality-and the easy sharing of ideas and opinions that goes with it-may soon become a thing of the past in America. In this program, Bill Moyers and journalist Rick Karr report on the struggle for the soul of the Internet as lobbyists and legislators reshape the telecom laws for the broadband era. Will democracy's high-tech forum for the exchange of ideas be destroyed by regulations that favor online entities with deep pockets? (87 minutes)

#MyEscape

Albatross World Sales

As hundreds of thousands of people flee unlivable conditions in countries such as Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Eritrea, many are documenting their journey toward freedom on their mobile devices. Combined with the pervasiveness of social media, these people are no longer simply faceless masses. Featuring actual footage and in-depth interviews, this documentary sheds light on the refugee crisis and shows how modern technology has changed the way the world responds.

Apollo 11 (Tech Effect)

A&E

In 1961, President Kennedy challenged the nation to put a man on the moon before the decade ended.

The Downing Of Gary Powers (Tech Effect)

A&E

Mainly a psychological war waged in fear, during the Cold War, the U.S. and Soviet Union were each apprehensive of the other's weapons technology. In an effort to learn what weapons were at its enemy's disposal.

Pearl Harbor (Tech Effect)

A&E

After the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, a formerly "neutral" and severely crippled U.S. entered WWII. But Japan brought specialized technology with them to Pearl Harbor, including the first torpedo plane with retractable landing gear.

Mobile Mania

BBC Worldwide Learning

Mobile phones and the Internet have emerged from nowhere to be the two fastest-growing business technologies of our time. In 2000, the Money program investigated the birth of this global industry and witnessed some of the most powerful companies willing to stake billions on its success.

What will Replace Facebook?

The Economist Group Limited

Facebook has dominated the social media landscape for the past 15 years, but breaches of its users' privacy mean it is now slipping out of favor. Could an emerging technological movement take its place?

AI: Into the Real World

NHK ENTERPRISES 21, INC.

Be it chess or Go, artificial intelligence has swept aside human grandmasters. Now, this human-surpassing AI technology is leaping from the game console into the real world. A taxi company in Japan has boosted passenger numbers by 20% by introducing an AI system that anticipates peak demand and dispatches cars accordingly. In the US, AI is used in courtrooms to calculate the risk of recidivism and help determine prison terms. This new technology is changing the world, but for better or worse?

How Drones Are Delivering Lifesaving Medical Supplies In Rwanda

NewsHour Productions

Getting medical supplies to where they are needed fast can mean the difference between life and death outcomes, but moving them efficiently across long distances to remote and rural areas can be difficult for traditional transportation. Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro reports from Rwanda on how one innovative company is leveraging new technology to accelerate these critical deliveries.

Inside China 3: Politics and the People

TV Choice Ltd.

This program examines China's communist political system and discusses popular protest and internet censorship in China.

Freedom of Expression Must Include the License to Offend: A Debate (US version)

Open to Debate

Freedom of expression is enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. But if "free speech," like hate speech and propaganda, is used to oppress others, what then? Are reasonable limits needed to preserve a democratic, civilized, and tolerant society, or would they lead us down a slippery slope? (102 minutes)

The Internet of Everything

Sideways Film

The Internet is invading all aspects of your life. No longer confined to your computer or your phone, the Internet is now in garbage cans, refrigerators, and the infrastructure of our cities. The future will either be a surveillance nightmare or an eco-utopia, the outcome determined by startups in Silicon Valley and Shenzhen. This program captures our present moment, when both futures still seem possible.

Episode 3: Unraveling the Universe (Smart China: Frontier of Science)

TVF International

Dr. Jordan Nguyen spends time with scientists using Multi Messenger Astronomy to learn about the biggest and most violent events in the universe.

How Instant Hot Water Could Change Your Life - and the Climate (Make It Count)

Million Stories, a project of the Singleton Foundation

The way we move, treat, and use water contributes a surprising amount of carbon into the atmosphere, especially because of how inefficiently we heat water. “In the water heating industry, the old technology is still the new technology,” Heatworks founder Jerry Callahan explains in this week’s episode of Make It Count. Even a small amount of scale on a heating element drastically reduces its efficiency and impacts the environment. So Jerry created the Ohmic Array, an energy-efficient solution that instantly heats water so there’s less waiting around for water to boil when you’re making a pot of pasta. The only problem is, more people need to use it.

Time Bomb Y2K

HBO

As the clock counts down to the the 21st century, the world faces the largest potential technological disaster to ever threaten humanity. The problem is comically simple yet incredibly complex – a bug that could cause computers to misinterpret the year 2000 as 1900, sowing chaos throughout the world as electronic systems failed. Crafted entirely from archival footage and featuring first-hand accounts from computer experts, survivalists, scholars, militia groups, conservative Christians, and pop icons, is a prescient and often humorous tale about the power and vulnerabilities of technology. By re-appraising both the cooperative efforts and mass hysteria surrounding this millennial milestone, "Time Bomb Y2K" explores how modern life has been dramatically transformed by the digital revolution.

Uses and Abuses: Fry’s Planet Word

BBC Worldwide Learning

While not everyone approves of “bad” words, in this program Stephen Fry learns that profanity plays an important role in human communication. Fry undergoes an MRI scan to find the part of the brain associated with swearing, and meets a stroke patient and a person with Tourette syndrome, both of whom say they can’t help using the F-word. Topics include swearing to relieve pain (with Brian Blessed); the power of bad words in humor and social interactions (with Armando Iannucci, Stephen K. Amos, and Omid Djalili); the use of double entendres and euphemisms to hide true meanings; and how slang and jargon ultimately add to the richness of language. A BBC Production. Part of the series Fry’s Planet Word. (58 minutes)

The Power and the Glory: Fry’s Planet Word

BBC Worldwide Learning

Storytelling has been with us as long as language itself. The desire to both entertain and explain has resulted in the flowering of language to describe every aspect of the human condition. In this program, Stephen Fry discovers what makes a good story, and why some writers are better at conveying joy or horror than others. Topics include The Odyssey and The Iliad; James Joyce’s Ulysses; the works of J. R. R. Tolkien and Stephen King (with Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson); character in Shakespeare; plot (with William Goldman); P. G. Wodehouse; 1984, Newspeak, and business speak; W. H. Auden and Coldplay; and the lyrics of Bob Dylan (with Sir Christopher Ricks). A BBC Production. Part of the series Fry’s Planet Word. (57 minutes)

Breaking the Wall to the Arts: How the Internet Opens a New Era of Creative Expression Beyond Boundaries

Falling Walls Foundation

"Censorship is saying: 'I'm the one who says the last sentence. Whatever you say, the conclusion is mine.' But the internet is like a tree that is growing. The people will always have the last word - even if someone has a very weak, quiet voice." Ai Weiwei is the first artist in history able to use digital media with the same effectiveness of sculpture, architecture, photography, film, music, performance. By using social media as a platform for active, sociopolitical engagement, he is one of the most influential living artists and the ultimate “dissident for the digital age”. For his role in uncovering corruption in Sichuan schools following the area’s 2008 earthquake he got arrested, was held by the Chinese government for 81 days, and hospitalized for injuries. The authorities have not yet returned his passport, preventing him from attending his numerous shows outside China, like his recent participation at the Venice Biennale, or commencing his work as a visiting professor at the Berlin University of the Arts. Together with Olafur Eliasson, another icon of public art, Weiwei discusses the role of the internet in the future of human rights via live video connection. At Falling Walls, they will announce their first joint effort, a digital public art platform dedicated to freedom of expression and creative collaboration.

Shouting Fire: Stories from the Edge of Free Speech

HBO

What political guarantees must a society possess in order to truly enjoy freedom of expression? Do Americans ever benefit by limiting the scope of the First Amendment? This program examines those questions, focusing on case studies that weigh free speech against other societal influences. These include the backlash against University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill’s musings on imperialism in U.S. policy; principal Debbie Almontaser’s forced resignation from New York’s first Arabic-English public school due to her alleged terrorist sympathies; inappropriate or excessive restraint against protesters at the 2004 Republican National Convention; and the suspension of a San Diego high schooler for wearing a “Homosexuality Is Shameful” T-shirt. An HBO Production. (74 minutes)

Hate and the Internet: Web Sites and the Issue of Free Speech

Nightline

What is the price of free speech? Protected by their First Amendment rights and the Internet's cultural philosophy of "post it all and let the readers decide," American hate groups are having a field day on the World Wide Web, creating virulent virtual communities of intolerance. In this program, ABC News anchor Ted Koppel investigates the proliferation of hate online with Don Black, founder of the white nationalist Web site Storm Front, and Floyd Abrams, a First Amendment attorney who has represented The New York Times and ABC News. Together they discuss both the medium and the message, plus the controversial issue of content filtering. (22 minutes)

The Road to Carnegie Hall: Introducing the YouTube Symphony Orchestra

EBS World Entertainment

Fledgling musicians meet masters of the symphonic art form in this behind-the-scenes look at a milestone Carnegie Hall event. The film profiles previously unknown artists who, after auditioning via the Internet, were subsequently invited to take part in the 2008 YouTube Symphony Orchestra, the first assembly of its kind. Shot in Japan, Bermuda, Romania, and other far-flung locations, the program documents a sublime example of artistic crowdsourcing as it traces the journeys of several participants summoned to New York to perform. With just two days to rehearse a huge program under classical maestros Michael Tilson Thomas and Tan Dun, the musicians face jet lag, language barriers, and an intimidating venue. But it’s all worth it when the music begins—and the applause follows! (67 minutes)

Media Rights and Responsibilities

Planet Pictures

Tabloid journalism. Kinky TV talk shows. "Gangsta" rap music. Sexually explicit and violent movies. The media have established new outposts in the frontiers of taste that were thought impossible 30 years ago, and all in the name of First Amendment rights and giving the public what it wants. But with these rights come responsibilities that are seldom respected. What leverage can society use beyond the boycott and angry letter to put curbs on the more outrageous forms of media expression? What is the rightful role of government? How do we balance these measures with a healthy respect for creativity and freedom of expression? This program looks at all of the issues surrounding the media's pursuit of the advertising dollar versus its responsibility to exercise some concern for the public good. (28 minutes)

Free Speech Is Threatened on Campus: A Debate

Open to Debate

Protests have erupted on university campuses across the country. College students are speaking out against racism, bigotry, and offensive language, which, they claim, fosters an unwelcoming, sometimes hostile, learning environment. Opponents, however, charge that their demands have gone too far, creating an atmosphere of intolerance that limits intellectual discourse and silences unpopular points of view. Are the protesters on campus fighting injustice or threatening free speech?

Sex, Drugs, and Gore

Retro Report

Offended by lyrics they deemed too sexual and violent, Tipper Gore and Susan Baker campaigned to put warning labels on albums in 1985. Years later, warning labels have ended up in some unexpected places.

M (1931)

Films Sans Frontieres

When the police in a German city are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the manhunt. Featuring Peter Lorre, Otto Wernicke, Gustav Gründgens. Also released as M - Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder. Top Foreign Films, National Board of Review, USA, 1933. Hall of Fame, Online Film & Television Association, 2009. In German with English subtitles. Directed by Fritz Lang. Germany. Some World Cinema titles may contain mature themes or content. Viewer discretion is advised.

Innovative Cities: Part 4

CNN

A super material is being used to recycle industrial water waste; a zero-emission hydrogen-powered vehicle is taken out for a spin; a new form of meat is being grown in a lab.

Riding the Bear

American Public Television (APT)

To begin with, personal computers were just bought by enthusiasts, until IBM, the mighty maker of mainframes, entered the market. By launching its own PC, IBM opened the way for corporate America to embrace desk-top computers. In every one of them was an operating system from Microsoft, a tiny company compared to IBM. But it was Microsoft that would come out top in the end.

Great Artists Steal

American Public Television (APT)

At first, PCs were a joy for nerds but a pain for the everyday user. The Xerox Palo Alto research center transformed them into a computer anyone could use. Inspired by their work, Steve Jobs had Apple create the Macintosh, the first really modern pc. But it wasn’t a money-spinner and Jobs was fired from the company he founded. It was a different result for Microsoft’s version of the Palo Alto research. This was Windows 95 and it made Bill Gates the richest man in the world.

Invisible Revolutions

ZED

In societies based on immediacy in which high-speed living has become the norm, some have decided to turn their backs on the acceleration of life and are trying to slow down this movement that seems destined for ecological, economic and social catastrophe. Who are these new rebels, and who are seeking ways to rediscover a more patient and harmonious relationship with time? Every day, throughout the world – in Europe, Latin America, the United States and India – they are experimenting individually or collectively with concrete local alternatives to lead a better lifestyle and to invent new paradigms. The “relocalization” of the economy is already underway, inspiring new practices such as local currencies, alternative credit solutions, non-profit supermarkets and locally produced energy. On the margins of the mainstream model, these pioneers are perhaps already shaping the world of tomorrow.

Mobile Madness

BBC Worldwide Learning

The telecoms industry grew from a dull, nationalised trade into an immensely rich, dynamic and powerful business. Mobile phones gave the telecoms companies an immense boost that seemed to promise endless expansion and profit. In 2000, telecoms companies spent billions of pounds on licences to run a new generation of devices. Known as '3G' (Third Generation) phones, they promised everything from TV on your mobile, to news, financial information and location devices. However, there was growing anxiety that the potential of this technology may have been grossly exaggerated. Meanwhile, telecoms companies' shares slumped, flotation's faltered and there were concerns about the size of their debts. Money program asks will 3G herald yet another golden age for the telecoms business, or could this be one of the most expensive blunders in business history?

Battle of Social Networks

3Boxmedia

Roughly five billion people around the world own a mobile phone, and more than half of them are smartphones. Millions of texts, images, and videos circulate daily through social networks, a perfect weapon for social organization. This program looks at the ways in which social networks are used as a tool for education, justice, and disseminating information, as well as how they are abused for personal and political gain.

Microchipping Humans Wields Great Promise, But Does It Pose Greater Risk?

NewsHour Productions

An intense debate is underway over the benefits and drawbacks of using microchips, typically relied upon to identify ranch animals and pets, on humans. Advantages include fast communication of critical patient data to medical teams, seamless payment and automatically opened doors. But skeptics warn of dire implications for privacy and ethics. Special correspondent Malcolm Brabant reports.

Ocean (Shapers of Tomorrow)

TV Only SAS

The oceans represent more than two thirds of the globe’s surface and almost half of them are more than 3,000 meters deep. They play a key role in the regulation of our climate, contribute to oxygen levels and are home to the vast majority of life on Earth. They are also a crucial part of the global economy; fishing, tourist activities and even sea transport provide a substantial source of income, but often with dramatic ecological consequences. But what if there were other ways of using the oceans and their treasures that were more respectful of the environment? Can we take advantage of this vast reservoir to produce energy, look after ourselves and create alternatives to plastic?

Episode 1: Our Changing World (Smart China: Frontier of Science)

TVF International

In a world faced with climate change and overpopulation, Dr. Jordan Nguyen investigates the science needed to cope with this inevitable dilemma.

No Sun. No Soil. Is this the Future of Food? (Make It Count)

Million Stories, a project of the Singleton Foundation

Vertical farming is a radical new way to feed our growing population sustainably. But can it replace traditional farming? Since people began farming 12,000 years ago, agricultural productivity has largely been subject to the chaos of nature — uncontrollable factors like weather, insects, and viruses. Space is also an inherent problem in agriculture: Arable land can only produce a finite amount of crops per harvest, and the health of soil degrades over time. Vertical farming minimizes both problems. Under carefully controlled conditions, plants can grow 365 days a year without sunlight, herbicides, or pesticides. And unlike other indoor farming techniques, vertical farming goes an extra step by optimizing space: Crops are grown on shelves stacked in columns, boosting the productivity of each square meter. Vertical farming won’t disrupt the global food system overnight. But the growth of the industry could speed up as LEDs become cheaper and people become more aware of how industrial agriculture contributes to climate change. The key to a sustainable and efficient food system could be to copy how libraries store books and New York City houses people: build up.

Innovative Cities: Part 3

CNN

Smart cities around the world are using technology like cloud computing, blockchain solutions, biometrics, and artificial intelligence to revolutionize city life as we know it.

Japan - The Land of Invention

CNN

Make, Create, Innovate's Nick Glass heads to Japan to explore its innovation culture, and meet the world's most prolific inventor, Yoshiro Nakamatsu. The self-describedSerial Inventor has over 3,000 patents, the floppy disk making him a multimillionaire. After diagnosed with cancer, he developed a robot treatment, and believes it to be working.

Constitutional Free Speech Principles Can Save Social Media Companies from Themselves: A Debate

Open to Debate

Americans have long prided themselves on their commitment to free speech, a principle enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. But in recent years, hate speech and phony content have proliferated online, offending and misinforming millions of Americans. Some have argued that the world’s largest social media companies, such as Facebook and Twitter, should restrict access to extremist material and ban fake news and false information. But others argue that this would amount to censorship, and private companies should not become the arbiter of acceptable and unacceptable articles and opinions. Should these companies adopt policies limiting content online? Or can free speech principles save social media companies from themselves?

Episode 5: Culture (Power Trip: The Story of Energy, Season 2)

PBS

Culture and modern energy go hand in hand. Our fashion, music, and art all have been impacted by modern energy. Wealthy industrialists with fortunes made from energy funded much of modern culture, using energy systems to spread culture across the globe.

The Time Factory

GAD

This unique and captivating documentary traces the story of humanity’s quest to measure time. Who invented time and who invented the clock? Why one hour, why 60 minutes, why 60 seconds? Since prehistoric times, man has sought to measure time, to organize social and religious life, and to plan food supply. Our daily lives depend on time and the synchronization of clocks, from surfing the Internet, geolocating, to paying by credit card.

St. Valentine's Day Massacre (Tech Effect)

A&E

St. Valentine's Day, 1929. While many Chicagoans enjoyed a romantic evening, a brutal scene ensued at SMC Cartage Company Garage. Al Capone, in a bitter feud with rival George "Bugs" Moran, ordered the death of seven members of Moran's gang.