Television

POV: Eat Your Catfish • WXXI-WORLD

A brutally frank and darkly humorous portrait of a family teetering on the brink, grappling with the daily demands of disability and in-home caregiving.

POV: Eat Your Catfish airs Sunday, October 27 at 10 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.

Kathryn’s ALS diagnosis has left Kathryn paralyzed and needing 24-hour care, communicating only by pointing out letters with her eyes on a special keyboard. It has also put incredible strain on her relationship with her husband who has a hard time looking at her and has been difficult for many nurses and aides. Yet, her desire to be with her children and to see her daughter’s wedding drives Kathryn’s persistence in surviving, and her critical and humorous spirit remains unbroken. Filmed almost entirely from Kathryn’s point of view, filmmakers Adam Isenberg, Senem Tuzen, and Noah Arjomand – Kathryn’s son – put together Eat Your Catfish from over 900 hours of recordings.

This documentary is presented as part of WXXI and the Golisano Foundation’s Move to Include^TM, an award-winning national initiative to promote disability inclusion, representation, and accessibility in public media.

Photo: Kathryn’s son and husband • Courtesy of Eat Your Catfish

POV: He’s My Brother • WXXI-TV

Peter was born deaf and blind, so his family has always seen and heard the world for him.

POV: He’s My Brother airs Monday, April 7 at 10 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming on the WXXI app.

Christine’s brother Peter experiences his world through touch, smell, and taste. Now 30 years old, Peter’s family is having trouble finding the proper care for his multiple disabilities. He’s My Brother explores how the family works to assure him a dignified life once the parents are gone – and Christine’s own uncertainties about one day becoming his primary caregiver.

This film is presented as part of Move to Include™ , a partnership between WXXI and the Golisano Foundation promotes inclusion.

Photo: Peter & Christine • Credit: Provided

Making Black America: Through the Grapevine

Renowned scholar Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. explores the vibrant cultural and social spaces at the heart of the African American experience.

Making Black America: Through the Grapevine, Pts. 1 & 2 of 4, airs Saturday, January 20 at 8 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.

Making Black in America chronicles the vast social networks and organizations created by and for Black people beyond the reach of the “White gaze.” The documentary series recounts the establishment of the Prince Hall Masons in 1775 through the formation of all-Black towns and business districts, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, destinations for leisure and the social media phenomenon of Black Twitter. Gates sits with noted scholars, politicians, cultural leaders and old friends including Charles M. Blow (journalist and commentator), Angela Davis (political activist, scholar and author), André Holland (actor), Fab 5 Freddie (hip-hop pioneer and visual artist), Jason King (chair of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music), Killer Mike (rapper and activist) to discuss this world behind the color line and what it looks like today.

Pts. 3 & 4 airs Saturday, January 27 at 8 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.

Photo: Title card • Provided by PBS

Second Opinion with Joan Lunden

Using the power and the mission of public media to educate, promote good health, improve doctor/patient communication, and empower people to take charge of their own healthcare.

Second Opinion with Joan Lunden airs Thursday at 1:30 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.

Second Opinion with Joan Lunden, produced by WXXI, focuses on health literacy in a way that is relevant and accessible to viewers and to physicians, in a format that engages and entertains. The program and related website and social media provide trusted health information on every platform, and the weekly television program engages viewers from across the United States as they watch doctors and patients talk through a variety of health issues from high blood pressure and cancer, to mental health and racial disparities in health. Please note: This series has retired, and no new episodes are being produced.

Photo: Host Joan Lunden on set with Dr. Lou Papa and Executive producer Fiona Kay Willis • Credit: Max Schulte

This American Land

Entertaining and informative reports on nature and energy conservation

This American Land airs Sundays at 1 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD.

Reporting from the front lines, This American Land brings you compelling stories on critical issues impacting America’s natural landscapes, waters, wildlife and energy resources in a changing climate, informing and engaging television audiences nationwide. Hosted by wildlife conservationist Ed Arnett.

Photo: Phil and Don Everly l Provided by APT

This Old House: Lexington Modern “Gone GEO” • WXXI-TV

A home with disjointed additions gets a modern update to become accessible for the whole family, and especially 12-year-old Caffrey, who has a rare form of muscular dystrophy called Duchenne.

This Old House: Lexington airs Sunday, July 28 at 4 p.m. on WXXI-TV.

In this episode, framing begins for a new zero-threshold sliding glass door. The geothermal heating and cooling system is explained and wells for the system begin at the house. The entrance gets a steel focal point.

Photo provided This Old House.

POV Shorts: Take The A Train • WXXI-TV

In the second of the two POV Shorts presented, All the Riders looks at the constant battle the New York City subway is for New Yorkers with a disability.

POV Shorts: Take the A Train airs Thursday, January 25 at 10:30 p.m. on WXXI-TV.

This program is presented as part of Dialogue on Disability, a partnership between WXXI and Al Sigl Community of Agencies – in conjunction with the Herman and Margaret Schwartz Community Series. Dialogue on Disability is supported by the Fred L. Emerson Foundation with additional support from The Golisano Foundation. The weeklong initiative runs January 22 through January 28, 2024.

WXXI and Al Sigl have been hosting Dialogue on Disability since 2005. In 2014, with the support of businessman and philanthropist Tom Golisano and the Golisano Foundation, Move to Include™ was formed. This initiative enables WXXI to present and develop programming that promotes inclusion year round.

Photo provided

Deconstructing Ableism: A Community Conversation • WXXI-TV

A panel discussion with Disability Rights Activist Imani Barbarin.

Deconstructing Ableism: A Community Conversation airs Thursday, January 25 at 3 p.m. on WXXI-TV

Disability rights activist Imani Barbarin is joined by moderator and disability advocate Jeiri Flores and a panel of local community members to discuss their lived experiences of ableism and address some of the issues raised in Imani’s keynote from a 2023 virtual event hosted by Starbridge.

Photo: Imani Barbarin l Credit: Maude Ballinger