Other special After Newtown coverage includes:

After Newtown: Guns In America at 8 pm Feb. 19
AFTER NEWTOWN: GUNS IN AMERICA is an unprecedented exploration of America’s enduring relationship with firearms. From the first European settlements in the New World to frontier justice; from 19th-century immigrant riots to gangland violence in the Roaring Twenties; from the Civil War to civil rights, guns have been at center of our national narrative. Americans have relied on guns to sustain communities, challenge authority and keep the peace. Efforts to curtail their distribution and ownership have triggered epic political battles. This program traces the evolution of guns in America, their frequent link to violence and the clash of cultures that reflect competing visions of our national identity.

Frontline: Raising Adam Lanza at 9 pm Feb. 19
In the wake of the mass killings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, FRONTLINE investigates a young man and the town he changed forever. Adam Lanza left behind a trail of death and destruction, but little else. He left no known friends, no diary. He destroyed his computer and any evidence it might have provided. His motives, and his life, remain largely a mystery. In collaboration with The Hartford Courant, FRONTLINE looks for answers to the central-and so far elusive-question: who was Adam Lanza? Also this hour: In the aftermath of the tragedy, President Obama called for a national conversation about guns in America. Nowhere is that conversation more intense than in Newtown, where FRONTLINE finds a town divided and explores how those closest to the tragedy are now wrestling with our nation’s gun culture and laws.

NOVA: Mind of a Rampage Killer at 8 pm Feb. 20th
What makes a person walk into a theater or a church or a classroom full of students and open fire? What combination of circumstances compels a human being to commit the most inhuman of crimes? Can science in any way help us understand these horrific events and provide clues as to how to prevent them in the future? As the nation tries to understand the tragic events at Newtown, NOVA correspondent Miles O’Brien separates fact from fiction, investigating new theories that the most destructive rampage killers are driven most of all, not by the urge to kill, but the wish to die. Could suicide and the desire to go out in a media-fueled blaze of glory be the main motivation? How much can science tell us about a brain at risk for violence? Most importantly, can we recognize dangerous minds in time — and stop the next Newtown?

Path To Violence at 9 pm Feb. 20th
Ever since the wake-up call that was Columbine, schools and law enforcement have developed multiple strategies to prevent attacks. Indeed, the horror of Newtown needs to be seen in a context that’s not defined by defeat. Remarkably, more than 120 school assaults have been thwarted in the past ten years. But, while security hardware and physical barriers can play a deterrent role, it’s been psychologists working hand in hand with law enforcement officers who have come up with the most helpful tools to prevent violent attacks. The Path to Violence tells the story of a powerfully effective Secret Service program – the Safe School Initiative – that’s helped schools detect problem behavior in advance. Yet, despite the progress made, recent attacks reveal a gaping hole in our safety net. Shooters like Adam Lanza, Jared Loughner and James Holmes all executed their attacks after they’d left their respective schools. In such cases, parents may be the first and only line of defense parents who are terrified of their own children and who receive inadequate help from the mental health and legal systems. Can the hard-won gains made by social psychologists and law enforcement be extended to encompass the parents and families of some of the nation’s most violent individuals? Further, is the country ready to have a national conversation about the balance between school safety and civil liberties that any such interventions – including gun control – require?

They will participate in a PBS NewsHour multimedia short course, which will take place Jan. 18-22 in Washington, D.C. The goals of the course are to give rising journalism stars an opportunity to be a part of history and collaborate with their peers from across the country, said PBS NewsHour Extra director Imani Cheers.

Second-year graduate students David Barer and Efren Salinas are among 14 student-reporters selected from a nationwide search. After being nominated by a professor, applicants were each asked to submit a cover letter, résumé, references, letter of recommendation, short biography, news clips and three story pitches.

“It was a great feeling to be selected for this short course,” Salinas said. “I’ve been working very hard since arriving at the School of Journalism, and I feel this is not only a validation of my hard work but an excellent opportunity.”

After visiting one of senior lecturer Kate Dawson’s classes in 2012, PBS’s Cheers invited Dawson to help lead the short course.

Instructors and student-reporters will arrive at the PBS NewsHour headquarters Jan. 18.

“It will be hectic,” Dawson said. “We’ll watch the show live on Friday, have a working dinner and then it’s a litany of 12- to 14-hour days.”

Barer will serve on a print team, writing stories about corporate donations and how the Obama administration plans to respond to environmental issues.

Salinas will serve on a film team led by Dawson. He will work on a video piece about the Hispanic vote, with a focus on the Dream Act and “Dreamers,” young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the country as children.

To follow the multimedia short course blog, visit inaugblog.com. On Twitter, student-reporters will post under #newshouru and #inaugblog.

“Going through this boot camp will be tough but really rewarding,” Dawson said. “We’re working on some really innovative ways to tell stories, including some amazing shooting techniques. This will be like a mini multimedia course for students — a semester rolled into six days. We’ll just need some rest when it’s done!”

Watch Williams’ 2010 interview with Evan. They discuss Williams’ politics, his interest in Kay Bailey Hutchison’s U.S. Senate seat, healthcare reform, climate change, being both African American and a conservative Republican, and growing up in Midland with parents who taught school and coached high school football.

Texas Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams from Texas Monthly Talks on Vimeo.

For more about Williams and his new role, you can read a press release from
the Governor’s office , an article from The Texas Tribune and an article from the Austin American-Statesman

The celebration is broadcast live from the West Lawn of the United States Capitol before an audience of hundreds of thousands of people with millions more at home, and around the world to our troops on the American Forces Network.

Bringing viewers the most spectacular fireworks display anywhere in the nation, the annual broadcast of A Capitol Fourth captures the pyrotechnics from every vantage point with 20 television cameras stationed around the city — including the U.S. Capitol, the White House, the Washington Monument and across the Potomac River. In tribute to America’s birthday, the show is capped off with Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” complete with live cannon fire provided by the United States Army Presidential Salute Battery.

A Capitol Fourth airs on Independence Day – July 4 – at 1 p.m.

Watch the full episode. See more KLRU Specials.

Robert Redford, Bob Woodward, and Carl Bernstein gathered at The University of Texas at Austin with a group of College of Communications students in KLRU-TV’s Studio 6A on April 21, 2011 to answer questions about All The President’s Men and the Watergate cover-ups that formed the real-life basis for the film.  The question and answer session was moderated by Glenn Frankel, director of the School of Journalism at The University of Texas at Austin and by Paul Stekler, Department of Radio-Television-Film Chair.

Webcam chat at Ustream

We know public affairs are important to you and that’s why we’ve decided to keep Charlie Rose and Tavis Smiley on at their regular times during the March pledge drive. You can watch Charlie Rose each week night on KLRU (18-1) at 11 p.m. Monday through Friday.  These episodes repeat a day later on KLRU-Q (18-3) at noon. You can pledge your support for these public affairs shows at klru.org.

In other Charlie Rose news, Charlie Rose has gathered together some of the foremost experts and scientists in brain research.  For those of you who have been following the Charlie Rose “Brain” series, I wanted to let you know that more programs are scheduled in the coming weeks. Here are some of the airdates planned.  (Please note that this tentative schedule can be changed.)

More information about the CHARLIE ROSE “Brain” series is available through the program’s Web site at charlierose.com. According to the Web site, the upcoming shows are as follows:

• March 23: The Aging Brain
• April 20: The Emotional and Vulnerable Brain
• May 25: The Anxious Brain
• June 22: The Mentally Ill Brain
• July 20: The Disordered Brain
• September 28: The Deciding Brain
• October: The Artistic Brain
• November: The New Science of the Mind

For those who missed the screening or who would like to see the film again, you can watch Frontline “Inside the Meltdown” here. You can also get time lines and other resources featured in the film here

We’ve gathered together a few other resources on the economy and personal finance from various Public Broadcasting sources to help both people who attended the Live United Screening and those who were unable to be at the event.

Nightly Business Report How the Economy Works blog posts by Terri Cullen

Nightly Business Report blog posts on personal finance by Jeff Brown

An economic lesson from former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, hiding inside a whimsical animation by TPT’s David Gillette

NewsHour business correspondent Paul Solmon takes questions about business and economic news

The story of a 20-year-old who just bought her first house (she started saving when she was 15).

Marketplace helps listeners understand financial terms that in many cases were obscure just a few months ago but are now part of the common lexicon of the financial crisis

Teens name the movies that remind them of the current economic crisis in this video from Marketplace and Youth Radio

Hear what a group of kids had to say to Marketplace’s Scott Jagow about money, the economy and the future