Host Carrie Saldo and correspondent Carolee McGrath on set of WGBY’s production of Connecting Point. (Photo courtesy WGBY)
SPRINGFIELD — Get ready for three dynamic women to deliver the top world, national, and local stories to you each day of the week starting this month on public television station WGBY.
With a fresh look and new time slot, WGBY’s Connecting Point expands from three nights per week to five beginning Monday, Feb. 19. New show host Carrie Saldo will present insightful western New England stories following first Katty Kay on BBC World News America and then Judy Woodruff on the The PBS NewsHour.
“It’s an honor to join the weekday lineup of quality journalism on WGBY,” Saldo says. “Like our PBS counterpart, The NewsHour, we make it a priority to devote much more time to topics and issues. We work in minutes, not seconds or characters.”
Indeed, the expansion of Connecting Point (CP) was motivated by the notion that public media can delve deeper into issues than commercial alternatives.
“This is our mission,” says WGBY General Manager Anthony V. Hayes. “The expansion of Connecting Point illustrates our commitment to the people of western New England, helping them make informed decisions about their lives and futures. I am confident that Carrie Saldo, along with the entire CP team, will bring our region the best and most important stories.”
Hosts and production staff of WGBY’s Connecting Point assemble on the new set. (Photo courtesy of WGBY)
IN THE TRADITION OF TRUST
As PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger put it, public television serves “our modern democracy with trusted, independent journalism. “
“In a media world where profits drive decisions,” she explained, “public media stands alone in its singular focus on the American public and not the bottom line.”
For Connecting Point Executive Producer Tony Dunne, that distinction drives his fresh new team to deliver that same quality journalism locally.
“We dive deep past the surface, beyond the 30-second sound bites and headlines that dominate the local media landscape,” he says. “Reporting facts is important, but what’s even more important are the ‘hows,’ the ‘wheres,’ and the ‘whys’ of any given issue — and learning the steps that can be taken moving forward. That’s how you grow, and that is the kind of reporting and storytelling I think our audience wants.”
