PBS39 On-Air Host, Station Manager Leaving

Amy Burkett, a Lehigh Valley television fixture since 1999, is named new station manager at Charlotte, N.C., PBS station.

  Television host Amy Burkett, well-known to those who are fans of Lehigh Valley PBS, is leaving for Charlotte, N.C., the Bethlehem-based station announced Thursday. Burkett has been named the general manager of WTVI, Charlotte’s PBS station. Burkett will also be the director of Digital Media Studies at Central Piedmont Community College, which holds the station's license. Burkett has been WLVT-TV, PBS39's station manager since 2011. She had just become the station's executive vice president this year. She joined in 1999 to create and host its weekly news magazine show Tempo. During her tenure, Burkett and her team received four national public television awards, eight Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters Awards, 28 regional Emmy …

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138th House Race: Hahn, Altieri Debate Issues on PBS39 Tonight

Candidates for 138th state House differ on job creation and education funding. Taped discussion will air on PBS39 at 8:30 p.m.

  State Rep. Marcia Hahn and her challenger in the 138th State House District, Leslie Altieri, clashed on jobs and state funding for education in a brief candidates forum that will air tonight on PBS39. Asked about jobs and the economy, Republican Hahn said that the best thing the state can do is keep taxes low and allow the private sector to do its job. Democrat Altieri said there are 600 bridges in Northampton and Lehigh counties that are in need of repair or replacement. She would push to fund some of those projects as a means of getting people back to work. Altieri decried state budget cuts to education funding and said she would look to increase state contributions to school districts that are way below what is mandated in the state …

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Dent, Daugherty Differ on Jobs, Health Care

In live television debate, incumbent Congressman Charlie Dent and challenger Rick Daugherty trade blows on Obamacare and job creation.

  Jobs and health care were the dominant topics of discussion in a live televised debate between Congressman Charlie Dent and challenger Rick Daugherty on Tuesday night. Following a similar script to a Tea Party forum 11 days ago, Republican Dent tore apart the Affordable Healthcare Act and blamed the country’s unemployment woes on President Obama, while Daugherty defended and praised Obamacare and blamed joblessness on free trade agreements that he said shipped jobs to China and Mexico. The two 15th Congressional District contenders also differed on deficit-reduction measures and military spending. Though very little time was devoted to women’s issues, the candidates’ differences on abortion got a brief spotlight. Dent remains one of the …

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Election 2012

Dent, Daugherty to Debate Live on PBS39 Tonight

Candidates in the 15th Congressional District will square off live from PBS39's studios at 8 p.m.

  In the Lehigh Valley, there is an undercard to the heavyweight title fight that will be the debate rematch between President Obama and Mitt Romney tonight. U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent and Democratic challenger Rick Daugherty will meet in a candidates’ forum that will be aired on television live from PBS39’s SteelStacks studios in South Bethlehem at 8 p.m. The 15th Congressional District candidates' debate, which is a joint project of the station and The Morning Call, will be a special live presentation of the station’s Tempo InDepth program. A limited number of tickets to the event were available as of Monday afternoon. If you want to reserve a seat, it is best to call the station at 610-867-4677. Dent, 52, the incumbent Republican from …

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IronPigs Documentary to Premiere at the Ballpark

PBS39 debuts "IronPigs: Fan-tastic" Wednesday at Coca-Cola Park; will air on April 9.

  PBS39’s brand-new hour-long documentary, IronPigs: Fan-tastic, featuring never-before-seen interviews and behind-the-scenes footage of the club’s 2011 season, will debut Wednesday at Coca-Cola Park in an exclusive viewing to the general public at 7 p.m. The program will debut on the air on PBS39 on April 9 at 9 p.m. “We shot about 40 hours of footage to create this one hour documentary,” said Amy Burkett PBS39 Television Station Manager and executive producer.  “We’re so excited to share the finished product with our community. We consider it a gift to our region to wrap up the first five years of IronPigs baseball in a beautiful bow highlighting an incredible season in this program.” IronPigs: Fan-tastic producer/writer Laura McHugh …

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PBS39's President Steps Down

Patricia Simon leaving to pursue other opportunities, credited with leading station through move to new SteelStacks Media and Education Center.

  Patricia Simon, the president and chief executive officer of PBS39, has stepped down to pursue other opportunities now that the station’s Public Media and Education Center at SteelStacks has been completed, station officials said Wednesday. "We thank Pat for her service and direction these past 10 years,” said Jamie P. Musselman, chair of the station’s board through a news release.  “PBS39 is well positioned to continue to grow in its new telecommunications facility. We are committed to bringing the best in local production to the Lehigh Valley and to increasing the impact of the PBS programming and message to our market area." Timothy S. Fallon has been named acting CEO while the Board of Directors undertakes a search for the new …

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PBS39 Celebrates Black History Month Tonight

Station will hold public screening event of new documentary on post-slavery forced labor.

  WLVT-TV, PBS-39, will celebrate Black History Month at 6:30 p.m. tonight by hosting a pre-screening of a new documentary about how thousands of African Americans were put into forced labor in the decades that followed the Emancipation Proclamation and the Civil War. Slavery by Another Name challenges the assumption that slavery ended in the South in 1865. The documentary is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name written by Douglas A. Blacmon, a senior writer for the Wall Street Journal. The screening will feature 18 minutes of highlights from the film and will be followed with a panel discussion with experts from Lehigh University, Moravian College and Northampton Community College. The event, which is co-sponsored by …

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Viewfinder

Viewfinder: Peace Celebrated at SteelStacks

Peace Pole is dedicated in ceremony at PBS-39's new headquarters at SteelStacks.

PBS-39, WLVT-TV, celebrated peace on September 11 by dedicating a Peace Pole to be installed outside the center. Also part of the events were prayers for peace from a variety of religions. Former United Nations member Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury addressed the public on the role of peace in the world. The ceremony closed with a presentation of the flags of the world.

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