In The Spotlight
Keystone Edition - Caregiving: Navigating the Challenges
Monday, October 6th 7pm
This one-hour panel discussion aims to provide resources for the caregivers among us.Hear one woman's personal story of being a caregiver, and find out what advice home health, therapeutic, and legal experts have to make the process less complicated.
Aging Together in PA Town Hall: Building the Future
Tuesday, October 7th 8pm
WITF and WVIA convene state leaders and experts to discuss how the Commonwealthand community partners are coming together to meet the needs of PA's rapidly growing older adult population. We'll look at how we can connect and improve services and supports to build a future where we can all thrive as we age.
Making NEPA Home
Thursday, October 16th 7pm
A WVIA original documentary film spotlighting the journeys of four refugees and immigrants who have resettled in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Through personal stories, local services, and cultural celebrations, Making NEPA Home honors their resilience and the diverse communities shaping the region.
Drama
Midsomer Murders - The Blacktrees Prophecy
Part 1 Sunday, September 28th 7pm
Part 2 Sunday, October 5th 7pm
Deep in Blacktrees Forest is a bombproof shelter built by a man named Warren Kaine. His extreme paranoia has drawn other survivalists to the village, and now a doomsday prepper group meets weekly. Guest stars include Sonita Henry (The Chelsea Detective).
Midsomer Murders - The Debt of Lies
Part 1 Sunday, October 12th 7pm
Part 2, Sunday, October 19th 7pm
Gated estate Challis Court is a tight-knit community for retired police officers, but when a new arrival is found dead, the other residents regard the murder as an affront; Barnaby realizes that the killer is likely an ex-police officer. Guest stars include Tom Conti (Oppenheimer, Doc Martin).
Brian and Maggie
Sundays 8pm, October 5th & 12th
1989. Two old friends, journalist Brian Walden and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, sit for one of the most famous political exchanges of all time, one that reshaped national opinion and triggered the downfall of the Iron Lady.
Maigret on Masterpiece
Sundays 9pm, October 5th - November 9th
Meet Chief Inspector Maigret as he solves Paris's most complex crimes using unorthodox methods and a fierce sense of justice. To prevail, he must outwit the city's most ruthless criminals while confronting his own troubled past.
Gold on Masterpiece
Sundays 10pm, October 5th - November 9th
What began as a routine armed robbery turned into one of the biggest heists in British history. Inspired by true events, this gripping drama uncovers the 1983 Brink's-Mat robbery in London and the decades-long ripple effects that followed.
History
American Experience - Kissinger
Part 1 - Monday, October 27th 9pm
Part 2 - Tuesday, October 28th 9pm
This two-part, three-hour film is an incisive portrait of the enigmatic powerbroker who served in the topmost echelons of American foreign policy under six presidents, Democrats and Republicans, with equal dedication. Whether celebrated or reviled, Kissinger’s contradictions reflect the contradictions at the heart of America’s foreign policy during the second half of the 20th century. From filmmaker Barak Goodman (“Oklahoma City,” “Clinton”).
Secrets of the Dead - Chasing the Plague
Wednesday, October 29th 10pm
Scientists track down the earliest known bubonic plague victims and study the virus in hopes of preventing future outbreaks while the societal impact of the plague is also considered.
Graceball: The Story of Bobby Richardson
Thursday, October 30th 7pm
GRACEBALL: THE STORY OF BOBBY RICHARDSON is an hour-long documentary about Bobby Richardson's professional baseball career, his time as a New York Yankee, and his life of faith and the impact that had on a broader community. Through interviews with Richardson, his family, historians, and others, the program celebrates and explores the ball player's accomplishments, which include his appearance in seven World Series, his time as a college baseball coach, his induction into the South Carolina Hall of Fame, and his selection as an eight-time American League All-Star (1957, 1959, and 1962-1966).
Arts
King of Them All: The Story of King Records
Friday, October 10th 9pm
The Story of King Records is a documentary directed by Yemi Oyediran that explores the groundbreaking legacy of Cincinnati's King Records. Founded in 1943 by Syd Nathan, King Records played a central role in shaping American popular music - from rock 'n' roll to soul and funk - while operating as one of the few fully integrated businesses in a segregated America. Through interviews, restored archival materials, and animation, the film showcases King's boundary-breaking artists such as James Brown, Hank Ballard, Little Willie John, and Grandpa Jones.
American Masters - Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore
Tuesday, October 14th 9pm
Take an intimate look at the life and career of actress Marlee Matlin as she shares her story in American Sign Language. At 21 years old, Matlin became the first Deaf actress to win an Academy Award for her role in Children of A Lesser God. With credits that include The West Wing and the Oscar-winning film CODA, Matlin continues to champion for more inclusivity and accessibility in entertainment.
News & Public Affairs
Independent Lens - Cracking the Code: Phil Sharp and the Biotech Revolution
Monday, October 6th 10pm
A groundbreaking look at Phil Sharp's rise from being a rural Kentucky farm boy who battled dyslexia to Nobel Prize-winning scientist. Narrated by Mark Ruffalo with insights from Walter Isaacson, Cracking the Code: Phil Sharp and the Biotech Revolution reveals how Sharp's RNA discovery transformed biology and launched the biotechnology revolution leading to life-saving treatments for millions.
AI: Unpacking the Black Box
Tuesdays 7:30pm, October 7th - November 25th
A groundbreaking series that explores the future of humanity in the age of emerging Artificial Intelligence. Hosted by technical futurist John McElligott, this show features interviews with experts from around the globe, discussing how AI will impact everything from jobs and education to faith and the pursuit of AI-driven immortality. Each episode utilizes AI to create visuals that illustrate the themes, progressively showcasing the advancements of Artificial Intelligence throughout the series.
POV - A Mother Apart
Monday, October 13th 10pm
In a poignant story of healing and forgiveness, Jamaican-American poet and LGBTQ+ activist Staceyann Chin explores how to raise a child after being abandoned by her own mother. Known for her work in Def Poetry Slam and shows like MotherStruck!, Chin embarks on a journey across Brooklyn, Montreal, Cologne, and Jamaica to find her mother, ultimately creating a new sense of home with her daughter.
Independent Lens - Ratified
Monday, October 20th 10pm
Ratified traces the fight to make Virginia the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. Led by Black women and cross-party activists, the film explores the century-long push to enshrine gender equality in the U.S. Constitution.
Science & Nature
Nova - Human: Neanderthal Encounters
Wednesday, October 1st 9pm
Discover how Homo sapiens outlasted Neanderthals - and how they helped make us who we are today.
Nova - Human: Into the Americas
Wednesday, October 8th 9pm
Follow ancient humans' perilous journey into the Americas, where a frigid Ice Age landscape, mammoths, and other fearsome beasts tested their resilience.
Nova - Human: Building Empires
Wednesday, October 15th 9pm
Explore how the rise of agriculture and writing leads to an explosion in the human population.
Art and Science Collide
Friday, October 17th 10pm
Weaving together stories of artists featured in the Getty's 2024-25 Southern California art event PST ART, the documentary highlights collaborations between artists and scientists to address some of humanity's most urgent challenges.
Nature - Walrus: Life on Thin Ice
Wednesday, October 22nd 8pm
With bulbous eyes, two long sharp tusks, a long mustache and one ton of blubber, the walrus is far from majestic. But for Kirk Johnson, scientist and Sant Director of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the walrus has been a creature close to his heart for 30 years. Johnson will follow his passion and trek across the Arctic to uncover the hidden lives of these lumbering giants, their cultural significance to the native peoples of the North, and the threats they face as climate change shrinks the sea ice. Johnson will explore the walrus' evolutionary past and reveal the creature's ability to adapt, survive and thrive through the ages. With global climate change, perhaps this colossal creature will be forced to adapt once more.
Nova - Ancient Desert Death Trap
Wednesday, October 22nd 9pm
Archaeologists investigate dozens of strange Stone Age megastructures in the Arabian desert. They're so big that their true form is visible only from the air, yet these giant structures were built by a mysterious people 9000 years ago.
Nature - Willow: Diary of a Mountain Lion
Wednesday, October 29th 8pm
A unique, non-invasive, mountain lion study uses a giant network of trail cameras scattered throughout Montana's Sapphire Mountains over a decade to piece together the life story of a female mountain lion. This film weaves clips of mountain lions and their complex interactions with each other and the rest of the forest world into a story about life and death that contains never-before-captured events and behaviors at every turn.
Nova - Superfloods
Wednesday, October 29th 9pm
In September 2024, Hurricane Helene dumped 14 inches of rain on North Carolina, triggering flash floods and killing more than 100 people. Why are these floods on the rise around the world-even in places thousands of feet above sea level?