A reason to watch (or record) TV tonight, and the following 3 Thursdays...

(Image from The Economist.)

(The second program, next Thursday, is about the revitalization of San Diego's low-income City Heights neighborhood .)

CALIFORNIA AND THE AMERICAN DREAM, a new four-part *Documentary Series* narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Linda Hunt, explores the dynamics of culture, community and identity in one of the world's most diverse regions. In the last 35 years, California, a state with the world's sixth-largest economy, has seen dramatic changes in social, demographic and cultural trends, which have transformed the state so much that it bears little resemblance to the Hollywood dreamscape projected in previous decades.

The Series premieres nationally on PBS, Thursdays, April 13-May 4, 2006 at 10 PM (check your local listings). To find out more about the Series, links and other resources, the community outreach campaign, and purchase a DVD or VHS of the Series, click here.

California’s “Lost” Tribes (Broadcast: April 13) In a few short years, some American Indian Tribes in California went from being the poorest people in the state to the richest — gaining extraordinary wealth from Casino gaming. The program weighs the impact of casino gaming on Indian self-determination, explores the historical underpinnings of Tribal sovereignty, the evolution of Tribal gaming, and its effects on California’s Native peoples and their non-Indian neighbors.

The Price of Renewal (Broadcast: April 20) What are the challenges of crafting a vibrant urban village from an ethnically, culturally and economically diverse population? This perceptive documentary examines issues of community development, philanthropy and civic engagement by chronicling the long-term redevelopment of the once-deteriorating neighborhood of City Heights. City Heights exemplifies patterns of immigration, migration, and gentrification common to many American cities.

The New Los Angeles (Broadcast: April 27) Los Angeles is an extraordinary city poised to reframe America’s dialogue about urban political and economic change. This powerful documentary travels from the racially charged elections that brought Mayor Tom Bradley to power in 1973, to the historic 2005 election of LA’s first Latino mayor in more than 130 years, Antonio Villaraigosa, and examines how race, labor and immigration have shaped and reshaped the city’s political life and landscape.

Ripe for Change (Broadcast: May 4) This fascinating documentary explores the intersection of food and politics in California over the last 30 years—from the politically charged 1960s, when food and the way that its grown became part of the political dialogue, to the present concerns about health and diminishing resources., bringing to life the powerful stories of both large and small family farmers in California, who are struggling in an increasingly globalized market.

Index Keywords: cultural-heritage; urban-revitalization; food-agriculture