Documentary

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new "CBS Reports" documentary "When America Trembled -- Murrow/McCarthy."

Television correspondent Robert Krulwich. In a Frontline production (co-produced with the Center for Investigative Reporting) called "Public Lands, Private Profits" to be aired at 9 p.m. tonight on PBS (check local listings), Krulwich examines today's gold mining industry--the impact of mining activities and the current political battle for control of mineral resources on public lands. The Mining Law of 1872 was passed to encourage settlement and development in the West. It's still on the books.

Author and long-time observer and student of China Orville Schell. Schell is correspondent for "Red Flag over Tibet," which will air tonight on PBS's Frontline (February 22 at 9 P.M. check local listings). In "Red Flag over Tibet," SSchell takes the viewers to that mysterious and isolated country on the "Roof of the World." He explores the question: Will Tibet survive its 40 years of occupation by China? He explains why the survival of Tibet--its people and its culture--has become an international issue.

Emmy-Award winning documentary filmmaker and producer, Thomas Lennon. His newest documentary examines the interaction between the tabloid press and the mainstream media: "Tabloid Truth: the Michael Jackson Scandal" (which airs on PBS stations February 15th). By watching the story of alleged sexual abuse swell from verifiable news to national spectacle, Lennon questions the state of American journalism, as CNN fights for the same stories once relegated to the National Inquirer.

Beverly and Dereck Joubert, wildlife documentary producers. This husband and wife team lives in northern Botswana, seven hours from the nearest village. Working and living out of a four-wheel drive vehicle, they have captured the family relationships of the last free-roaming elephants left in Africa. Their latest wildlife film, "Reflections on Elephants," contains ground-breaking footage of lions attacking an elephant calf. Previously, such attacks were thought to be only mythical. The documentary premieres on PBS this Wednesday at 8:00 PM ET.

Also, T.V. critic David Bianculli reviews tonights "Frontline" about Lee Harvey Oswald.

Documentary film makers Alan and Susan Raymond. They made documentary history with "An American Family," living for seven months with the Loud family, to film the life of a "typical" American family. The 12-part series was broadcast over PBS in 1973, and it turned out to be a portrait of a not-so-typical family, and of a family disintegrating before our eyes.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the latest episode of the television documentary series, CBS Reports. This installment follows the famed Gulf War general as he returns to Vietnam for the first time in decades.

TV critic David Bianculli takes another look at the documentary series. His only quibble is in the billing: unlike the broadcasting company, the show is only 18 years old.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews a new documentary about the Beatles' classic album on the Disney Channel. He says it covers familiar ground -- but producer George Martin's segments breaking down each song's elements make it worth checking out.

TV critic David Bianculli previews public television's "P.O.V." episode called "Dream Deceivers," an analysis of a Nevada court case in which the heavy metal band Judas Priest was sued by the parents of two teenagers who shot themselves after listening to the band's music.

Filmmaker Marlon Riggs. His film about gay black men,"Tongues Untied," was shown on PBS last year, and it unleashed a storm of outrage in powerful right-wing circles. Sen. Jesse Helms (R, NC) even put together and distributed a seven-minute tape of scenes from the film, which, taken out of context, completely distorted Marlon Riggs' intentions. The documentary is often used by Congresspeople as an example of what's wrong with public broadcasting, and why it shouldn't be federally funded.

TV Critic David Bianculli previews "Street Scenes: New York on Film," a new hour-long documentary on the AMC cable network.

Anthropologist David Maybury-Lewis. He's the founder of Cultural Survival, an organization that that helps indigenous peoples whose ways of life are threatened by development. He's hosting a new PBS series called "Millennium," which starts tonight, and he's the author of the companion book, also called "Millennium." The series and the book seek to gain tribal wisdom for the modern world. (The book is published by Viking.)

Television critic David Bianculli reviews "MGM: When the Lion Roars." It's an eight-hour documentary about the MGM studios. It premieres this Sunday on the TNT cable network (which by the way is owned by the same man who owns MGM, Ted Turner).

Journalist Hedrick Smith. Smith has spent years covering the Soviet Union, as a reporter for the New York Times, as an author, and as a TV documentary producer and correspondent. He's just returned from the former Soviet Union, and his latest report, "After Gorbachev's U.S.S.R." airs this week on the public television documentary series, "Frontline." (Interview by Marty Moss-Coane)

Television critic David Bianculli will preview this week's episode of the public TV science show "Nova." It's called "Can You Believe TV Ratings?"

Television critic David Bianculli reviews two shows you should see, and one you should make certain you NEVER watch.

Critic David Bianculli reviews "The Quiz Show Scandal," a new documentary that's part of PBS's "The American Experience" series. It's about the quiz shows that were fixed during the 1950s.

Television critic David Bianculli reviews two of the many specials commemorating the 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Tonight's two hour special on ABC, "Pearl Harbor: Two Hours That Changed the World," and Saturday's special on CBS, called "Remember Pearl Harbor."