AETN Engage

Paul McCartney: The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in Pergormance at the White House

Larmon VanWinkle — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:24:02 -0500

President and Mrs. Obama will host a concert on June 2 in honor of musician Sir Paul McCartneys receipt of the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The event in the White House East Room will include performances by McCartney himself and Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello, Jonas Brothers, Herbie Hancock, Emmylou Harris, Corinne Bailey Rae, Dave Grohl, Faith Hill, Lang Lang and Jack White, with remarks by Jerry Seinfeld. (Program subject to change.) President Obama will present the Gershwin Prize to McCartney during the event. The music special, part of the IN PERFORMANCE AT THE WHITE HOUSE series, will feature the concert event, as well as behind-the-scenes footage and interviews. Paul McCartney: The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in Pergormance at the White House airs Wednesday, July 28th at 7:00 p.m.

Watch the full episode. See more In Performance at The White House.

Give a helping hand: Volunteer

Kerry Krell — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 12:52:54 -0500

We all have such busy lives--work, family, chores--that finding time to volunteer seems impossible. However, did you know that in 2009, 63.4 million Americans contributed 8.1 billion (yes, BILLION) hours of service? If that many people can put in that much time, what's your excuse? Let's just pretend for a moment that you have a couple of free hours this week. What to do with them? Well, you could say take a nap, mow the lawn, give the dog a bath or fold laundry. But none of that sounds like a whole lotta fun.

So, here's a few reasons why you should take those free hours and volunteer.

Volunteering can:

help you learn or develop a new skill

Yes, you can teach old dogs new tricks.

help you feel connected to your community

If you're new to the area or just feel like you've lost touch with your neighborhood there's no better way to feel like you belong.

help boost your career options

Do you feel like you need a career change? Volunteering is the simplest and most effective way to test the waters of a new career.

help you meet new people and make new friends

Odds are you won't make a whole lot of new friends while mowing your yard--unless you want to count that swarm of bees after you since you grazed their nest with the lawn mower, in which case who needs enemies when you've got friends like that?

Notice a recurring theme up there? Everything begins with help. So if you happen to find yourself with a few extra hours in the day, week, month or even year, help out your local organization by voluteering. And most importantly you'll help yourself.

Whether your specialty is speaking, greeting, coordinating, clerical or operational, the perfect volunteer opportunity is waiting for you (or your group!) at AETN.

For information about how you can volunteer for AETN's August Pledge, visit the AETN Foundation website or call our Volunteer/Internship Coordinator, Kristy Garrett, at 501-682-4159 or e-mail at kgarrett@aetn.org

A Capitol Fourth 2010

Larmon VanWinkle — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 11:11:52 -0500

A Capitol Fourth 2010 This July 4, America�s biggest and brightest birthday party celebrates 30 spectacular years on air.

The multi-award winning A CAPITOL FOURTH will be hosted by Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actor Jimmy Smits, with unrivaled performances by some of the country�s best-known musicians, including seven time Grammy Award-winning music legend Gladys Knight; multiple Grammy, CMA and ACM Award-winning country music superstar Reba McEntire; country music sensation Darius Rucker; singer David Archuleta (American Idol); actor and singer John Schneider; and renowned classical pianist Lang Lang with the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of top pops conductor Jack Everly. A CAPITOL FOURTH will air live in HD from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol before a concert audience of hundreds of thousands, millions more at home and to our service members around the world on the American Forces Network. A CAPITOL FOURTH can also be heard live in stereo over NPR member stations nationwide.

Bringing viewers the most spectacular fireworks display anywhere in the nation, the 30th annual broadcast of A CAPITOL FOURTH will capture the stunning pyrotechnics from every vantage point with 18 TV cameras stationed around the city � including the U.S. Capitol, the White House, the Washington Monument and across the Potomac River. In tribute to America�s 234th birthday, the show will be capped off with a rousing rendition of Tchaikovsky�s �1812 Overture,� complete with live cannon fire provided by the United States Army Presidential Salute Battery, an audience favorite and now A CAPITOL FOURTH tradition. A Capitol Fourth airs Sunday, July 4th at 7:00 p.m.

Behind the Scenes with Wayland Holyfield and Friends

Kerry Krell — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 10:01:14 -0500

Last night, 4 Arkansas songwriters--Wayland Holyfield, Mark Wright, Shawn Camp and Randy Goodrum--performed to a full house at AETN studios as part of "AETN Presents: On the Front Row."

When you're a songwriter you have to get used to people never really believing you when you tell them who you are. Randy Goodrum probably summed it up best: "You'll be some place and you'll hear your song and you'll say 'Hey, I wrote that.' and people will look at you and wonder if they should call security."

Although you may not recognize their faces, you'd have no problem recognizing their songs. Perhaps you've heard of Lee Ann Womack's "I Hope You Dance," Mark Chesnutt's "Goin' Through the Big D," George Strait's "Today My World Slipped Away," Garth Brook's "Two Pina Coladas," Brooks & Dunn's "How Long Gone," Steve Perry's "Oh Sherrie," Anne Murray's "You Needed Me," and "Could I Have This Dance," Chicago's "If She Would Have Been Faithful...," and Don William's "You're My Best Friend."

That's just a handful of the many songs these men have written, co-written, or produced. Nevermind the fact that these men are also fantastic musicians.

Each of the artists are Arkansas natives and many had family and friends in the audience so it made for a very intimate performance. During the show, Holyfield, Wright, Camp and Goodrum shared personal stories about their lives as songwriters, mixing in hilarious anecdotes about being on the road and trying to sell their songs.

Many Arkansans are familiar with "Arkansas (You Run Deep in Me,) which Holyfield performed as the last song in the show. We had a few people tell us that song brings a tear to their eye and they weren't kidding. It's amazing and great that a song can be that powerful to someone.

We also must mention how nice these men were as well--not only did they do one heck of a show, but they were nice enough to do a meet and greet with some of their biggest fans after the show.

Don't forget: if you had your picture taken with the artists, be sure to visit our Flickr page flickr.com/photos/aetntv/ where you can download your photo for free. You can also check out photos from other events AETN has been a part of.

We hope you enjoyed the show and if you couldn't make it here's a little behind-the-scenes footage.

AETN will produce a commemorative "Arkansas (You Run Deep in Me)" DVD including Holyfield performing the song in the AETN studios, the original AETN sign off with the song, an exclusive interview with Holyfield, a photo gallery from the "AETN Presents" taping and an audio download of the song. Visit www.aetn.org/waylandholyfield for more information about the DVD.

"AETN Presents: On the Front Row with Wayland Holyfield and Friends" will air on the all-new season of AETN Presents beginning this Fall.

Need to Know

Arlton Lowry — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 09:21:46 -0500

If you haven�t had the chance to check out PBS� new show �Need to Know� then you�re missing out on a really well-produced program. Here are some video segments they have produced covering the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Exploring Arkansas Collection

Larmon VanWinkle — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 09:29:03 -0500

Announcing the complete Exploring Arkansas collection now available online! We have been working hard to answer your request to watch your favorite episodes of Exploring Arkansas anytime and anywhere. As of today the entire archive of Chuck Dovish's adventures are online and free for you to watch. This collection will continue to grow as Chuck shows us new and exciting areas of our beautiful state each month.

These videos are also available for download through iTunes so you can take Chuck's mini-documentaries with you while you explore Arkansas's natural wonders.

We hope you enjoy the Exploring Arkansas series as much as we enjoy making it for you.

National Memorial Day Concert 2010

Larmon VanWinkle — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 10:32:16 -0500

For more than 20 years, PBS has been proud to honor the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform, their families at home and all those who have given their lives for our country with the annual broadcast of the National Memorial Day Concert. The multi award-winning event, broadcast live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, will be co-hosted for the fifth year by Emmy Award-winner Gary Sinise ("CSI: New York") and Tony Award-winner Joe Mantegna�("Criminal Minds"),� two acclaimed actors who have dedicated themselves to veterans� causes and supporting our troops in active service. The 21st annual broadcast of the NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT will air live in HD before a concert audience of hundreds of thousands, millions more at home and our service members�around the world on the American Forces Network.

Joining co-hosts Sinise and Mantegna will be an all-star line-up of dignitaries, actors and musical artists that includes: distinguished American leader Colin L. Powell USA (Ret.); Oscar, Golden Globe and multiple Grammy award-winning music legend and humanitarian Lionel Richie, whose distinguished career includes more than 100 million records sold; Grammy, CMA and ACM Award-winning country music artist Brad Paisley; Tony and Emmy Award-winning actress Blythe Danner;�acclaimed actors Dennis Haysbert and A.J. Cook; classical crossover artist Katherine Jenkins; three-time Tony-nominated Broadway star Kelli O�Hara; and Grammy-winning gospel/adult contemporary superstar Yolanda Adams�in performance with the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of top pops conductor Jack Everly.

The National Memorial Day Concert airs Sunday, May 30th at 7:00 p.m.

Through a Dog's Eyes

Kerry Krell — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 10:36:13 -0500

This is a guest blog post by Kerry Krell, Marketing and Outreach Assistant, here at the Arkansas Educational Television Network.

We've all heard "man's best friend." In fact, we've heard "man's best friend" so much that we almost forget the meaning.But when was the last time you really thought about the significance of what "man's best friend" really means?

A couple weeks ago, AETN aired a documentary, "Through a Dog's Eyes," about the training and placement of service dogs.

Service dogs are trained to help those with impaired vision, hearing or other disabilities. These dogs are trained to helpopen doors, help people cross streets and pull wheelchairs. Other service dogs help people with autism, epilepsy, or psychiatric conditions. In other words, these dogs are trained to be a substitute for a human caretaker.

However, picking a service dog isn't as easy as finding the dog you think is the cutest. Every dog responds differently to individual people. Some dogs respond better to adults, others are more tuned to the needs of children. The documentary does a really good job of explaining this through some rather heartbreaking footage.

Back to the meaning of "man's best friend." A 'friend' is someone who helps you when you need it, is a great listener and makes you laugh. Of course dogs are good listeners because they can't speak, but I like to think that if they could dogs would tell lots of corny jokes.

Dogs have been bred for thousands of years specifically to coexist with man in the most complementary relationship possible. There isn't a better example of this than through the use of a service dog.

Arkansas actually has only one service dog training group called Southwest Service Dogs. They're a non-profit company and provide several different types of service dogs including home helpmates and even therapy dogs for those in nursing homes or hospitals. If you know someone who might benefit from the help of a service dog or would like to know how to get involved check it out by following this link.

If you would like to learn more about the life of a service dog and the human lives they affect, you can watch "Through a Dog's Eyes" online by following this link.