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PSPB responds to national tragedy By Celena E. Kusch
	Arguably no event in the history of American broadcasting has asked so much from the media and inspired such thoughtful programming as this fall’s tragic series of terrorist attacks on the United States. Locally, Penn State Public Broadcasting (PSPB) worked to meet the challenge of disseminating timely information to the more than 1.5 million people in the radio and television audiences. For many Pennsylvanians, public broadcasting provides the only media access available without cable or satellite service.   Ted Krichels, assistant vice president for outreach and general manager of Penn State Public Broadcasting, said, “Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been touched by this tragedy. In this difficult time, we believe it is our responsibility to provide thoughtful and thorough programming that can help us all understand these events. While dealing with their own grief and shock, the members of the PSPB team have remained committed to communicating news and information to our communities.”   At WPSU-FM, the response to the attacks was immediate. Bob Barton, on-air announcer for the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, heard the Associated Press (AP) alarm shortly after 9 a.m. He broadcast the news to the radio audience even before the second plane struck the World Trade Center towers. Ironically, Barton was also live on the air when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.   Shortly after Barton’s announcement, National Public Radio (NPR) began providing coverage of the events. WPSU-FM aired NPR news around the clock for the week following the attacks, while WPSU-FM staff monitored wire services to report new developments during NPR breaks.   One listener from Brookville, Pa., called the radio broadcasts a welcome “alternative to traditional, TV-dominated news sources” and the barrage of images of the attacks. The listener praised the “calming effect” of WPSU’s radio commentary.   WPSX-TV also provided coverage for local viewers, broadcasting national Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) news, as well as memorial concerts from New York City and the Philadelphia Orchestra and PBS call-in and town meeting programs with hosts Michelle Martin, Bill Moyers and Charlie Rose.   Several locally produced television and radio programs provided audiences with additional information about events specific to the central Pennsylvania area.   Webmaster Steve Shipman turned the WPSU-FM Web site into a source for current information about community prayer services, drives for donations and grief counseling information. The site also posted streaming audio of remarks by Gov. Tom Ridge and selected NPR reports.   WPSX-TV produced a special episode of Take Note focusing on the local support of the Red Cross, and Penn State President Graham Spanier’s To the Best of My Knowledge discussed the attacks. The station also aired a live call-in special produced by WITF-TV in Harrisburg, featuring Gov. Ridge.   WPSU-FM produced a similar call-in, hosted by Producer and Director Cindi Deutschman. The program featured Rev. George Burn, director of Pastoral Care at Centre Community Hospital; Tuvia Abramson of Penn State Hillel; and Cathryn Epp, a therapist specializing in grief. The guests addressed questions from local listeners about how to deal with the emotional and spiritual impact of the tragic events.   WPSX-TV also devoted several hours to helping parents and teachers communicate with children about the attacks. Programs included specials about how to talk to children by Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Zoom and Twin Cities Public Television.   On Sept. 14, What’s in the News (WITN), a current events program produced by Penn State Public Broadcasting and the College of Education, began airing a special episode about the attacks. WITN is delivered weekly to a third of all fourth- through seventh-grade classrooms nationwide. The WITN “Special Report: Terrorism in America” reached WPSX-TV viewers and students throughout the country with age-appropriate coverage of the events and the President’s assurances that the country will keep going.   Katie O’Toole, producer/writer and host of WITN, explained the goals of the program. “We wanted to provide a program that teachers would feel comfortable showing in their classrooms and that would give children some context for the terrible images bombarding them on television,” she said.   Penn State’s Dr. Murry R. Nelson, professor-in-charge of Social Studies Education and head of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, worked with O’Toole to ensure that all content was developmentally appropriate for middle-school students. O’Toole and WITN producers also consulted with several child psychologists and the National Association of School Psychologists to shape the broadcast and Web-based materials and activities for teachers, parents and students.   After the broadcast, WPSX-TV received responses from a number of WITN viewers, including the following note from Linda A. Hanson, director of school services for the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board: “I just wanted to let the entire WITN team know how wonderful your program was on Friday, Sept. 14. You handled a difficult task just wonderfully. You did a great job of explaining the situation to the target age level students — giving the facts and helping them gain an understanding of what was happening and why it was important,” she wrote.   “As an ITV director for the state of Wisconsin, I am proud to broadcast your program to the state,” Hanson added.   Additional programming for both children and adults is being planned to address future issues arising from the national tragedy and its impact on the local area.