American Experience On PBS

One of the longest-running and best features on the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) is American Experience, the history series produced by station WGBH out of Boston. Last month's featured program was The Assassination Of Abraham Lincoln, a fairly good re-telling of one of the darkest periods in American history.

I received an email yesterday from a senior project manager at PBS Engage, a relatively recent attempt by PBS to use "new media" in the hopes of being more interactive with PBS viewers. From the Engage website: "We think social media provides PBS with a great opportunity to let viewers and Web users get involved in new ways—commenting on programs, discussing the issues they raise, speaking directly to producers and stations, rating what’s on the air and online, forming fan groups, and doing other things we haven’t thought of yet. " She asked me to share this information with my readers, and I'm happy to oblige.

Part of this process is something called "Five Good Questions" in which viewers can submit questions to various PBS producers, personalities, etc. about the shows. Each week the five best questions are selected and are answered by the person or persons in question.

This week, the person answering the questions is Mr. Mark Samels, the Executive Producer of American Experience. If you have ever had any questions about Experience, here is your opportunity to ask them. One thing I'd like to know is how are the various topics selected? Click here to submit any question(s) you might have for him.

American Experience is, in my opinion, one of the best series on PBS. I'm pleased that someone from the series would notice The Abraham Lincoln Blog. Speaking of Honest Abe, I'll be posting a review of the assassination special within a few days.