Do you ever watch television pundits discussing important public policy issues and wish you could cut through the sound bites and talk back, or maybe just hear from real people instead of a bunch of talking heads? Now you can.
Two-Way Street--a new commercial-free program distributed by American Public Television and shown on various PBS stations across the United States--invites viewers to debate critical issues with a panel of top-notch experts that may range from Nobel Prize-winning economists to best-selling authors.
Each episode of Two-Way Street will focus a full hour of audience/expert debate on a single topic such as drug use and its decriminalization, the effect of corporate farming on public health, the costs of U.S. military presence abroad or the future of journalism in the Internet age. Two-Way Street is taped before a live studio audience whose members engage the expert panelists in an interactive debate about the issue chosen for each episode. Other viewers can join in by using webcams to submit questions and comments over the Internet.
"We wanted to create a show where the audience is part of the debate, posing questions and comments on an equal footing with the pundits," said Bob Bowdon, host and executive producer of Two-Way Street. "We're giving a voice to the viewers that is usually unheard."
Bowdon is a good choice to host the new program. He is a veteran television producer, reporter and commentator and also runs Bowdon Media, an Internet marketing firm in New Jersey. Bowdon's former on-camera work includes six years as a news anchor and reporter for Bloomberg Television's World Financial Report and a recurring role as reporter Brian Scott in satirical news videos for The Onion. He also hosted Café Digital, a half-hour nationally syndicated program on technology and culture.
Two-Way Street debuts tomorrow [Saturday, February 6, 2010] with two four-hour marathons on station WETA in Washington, DC. Over the next week, PBS stations in California, Michigan, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Kentucky will start airing the program. Check your local listings or contact your local PBS station for possible show times in your area.
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