President Obama to Iowa, Missouri and Illinois

President Obama is in Iowa Tuesday before heading to Missouri and Illinois on Wednesday.

You can watch the town hall meeting from Ottumwa on www.IPTV.org as it happens or after the event. For my friends in Iowa, you can watch the White House to Main Street event on our .3 signal or as it is called IPTV World. If you don’t get all 3 channels we offer here at Iowa Public Television, you are really missing out on some great programming that does not make our main service. All you need is an antenna, digital tuner and some electricity to power your TV.

My coworkers at Market to Market are working on a series of events called the Rural Economic Summit. There’s been a town hall in Iowa and Wisconsin and now the three state tour of the president will be a part of the new installment seen Friday at 8p in Iowa on Market to Market. The show also has a new Twitter feed. You can follow us @MarketToMarket.

There’s also a blog that updates many things about the rural economy not only in Iowa and the midwest but ag regions. You can see that blog here.

Tuesday night IPTV will re-air the president’s speech and town hall tonight at 8. Then we’ll host an Iowa Journal discussion in the studio about how to revive the Iowa economy, will the president’s plan work, why did he pick Ottumwa for the visit and several other questions that I have on notebook. That will follow the speech, around 9 tonight.

Dave Swenson and Bill Brown will be in studio with me tonight around 9. Swenson is an associate scientist in the economics department at Iowa State University. He’s also an adjunct lecturer in Community and Regional Planning at ISU, and lecturer in the Urban and Regional Planning Program at The University of Iowa. Nonetheless, his primary appointment is as a staff research economist at ISU.

Brown is a partner in the BrownWinick law firm in Des Moines, this year he is also serving as chair of the board of directors for the Iowa Association of Business of Industry.

Brown and Swenson have both been guests on TIJ before.

We will be showing Frontline about 30 minutes later tonight at 930, so bear with us.

We’ll also be talking beer on Thursday’s regularly scheduled Iowa Journal slot of 8p. Here’s a post on that program.

IPTV This Weekend April 24, 2010

A candidate for Governor, Farm bill priorities, and piano performers are the highlights the next few days on Iowa Public Television.

Also, if you’re looking for the Iowa Journal videos from our Food, Inc. discussion, you can click here.

Here’s the official release:

Tonight at 6:30 The Iowa Journal looks at unique and innovative ways Iowans are trying to work, live, and play in ways that are more environmentally friendly.

At 7:30 tonight, watch Iowa Press as the statehouse reporters interview Bob Vander Plaats (R-Sioux City), a candidate for the Republican nomination for governor.

Then tonight at 8, Market to Market reports on how strong export numbers are supporting a rally in grain and oilseed markets; Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack outlines his priorities for the next Farm Bill; and an outspoken author squares off with a Missouri farmer on the merits of production agriculture.

On Sunday at 9:30 p.m., tune in for Studio III Presents: The Two Davids. This program features David Liljedahl and David T. Piersel on the piano.

2010 Terrace Hill Piano Competition will air on Monday at 8 p.m. This performance features the three finalists in the annual high school music competition.

On Monday at 9 p.m., My Lai: American Experience examines one of the darkest chapters of the Vietnam War—the 1968 My Lai massacre, its cover-up and the soldiers who broke rank to halt the atrocities.

In the aftermath of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, NOVA presents Mind Over Money—an entertaining and penetrating exploration of why mainstream economists failed to predict the crash of 2008 and why we so often make irrational financial decisions. It airs Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Parents and activists are using social media to take on public health scientists’ view of vaccines. Learn more Tuesday at 9 p.m. during Frontline: The Vaccine War.

Many Green Themes on IPTV this week

We’ve got a lot of thought provoking stuff coming up this week on Iowa Public Television. Much of it is themed around Earth Day. Wednesday brings a look at Food, Inc., with a panel discussion to follow. It will have the Iowa Journal name and be hosted by Mark Pearson of Market to Market fame. Hopefully we won’t get any questions about the Market to Market theme song. We get about 2 a month. For the record, the song is “Buy for Me the Rain” by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.

The Iowa Journal is still working on a show about beer which includes a story about Olde Main in Ames. Also music education and the economy are coming soon.

Here’s the office information from the IPTV press shop.

Tonight at 6:30 The Iowa Journal looks at several characteristics that contribute to the state’s quality of life—some of the core values that makes Iowa a great place to live. (this includes a look at Daytrotter, the Midwest League, Columbus Junction and public art, which includes a look at the Des Moines Sculpture Park.)

At 7:30 tonight, watch Iowa Press as the statehouse reporters interview State Rep. Rod Roberts, a candidate for the Republican nomination for governor.

Then tonight at 8, Market to Market profiles the Obama administration’s plans to enforce antitrust laws in the biotech arena, and looks back at Khrushchev’s visit to an All-American farm.

On Sunday at 3 p.m., The Truth About Cancer chronicles the lives of patients, doctors and researchers who are united in the hope for a cancer cure.

Large-scale die-offs of frogs around the world have prompted scientists to take desperate measures to try to save whatever populations they can. Learn more Sunday at 7 p.m. during Nature: Frogs: The Thin Green Line.
Earth Days: American Experience traces the origins of the modern environmental movement through the eyes of nine Americans who propelled the movement from its beginnings in the 1950s. Tune in to watch Monday at 8 p.m.

On Tuesday at 7 p.m., with help from eco-celebrities like Ed Begley, Jr. and Bill Nye “The Science Guy,” NOVA: The Big Energy Gamble examines California’s aggressive pursuit of a sustainable energy future.

On Wednesday, tune in at 8 p.m. for POV: Food, Inc. This documentary examines the American agricultural system, and the impacts of increased production and lower costs. And stay tuned immediately following the show for More on the Story: The Iowa Journal Special Edition for additional perspective on some of the issues raised in Food, Inc. This special program will feature Craig Lang, president of the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, and Neil Hamilton, director of the Agricultural Law Center at Drake University. Market to Market host Mark Pearson will moderate the discussion.

On IPTV this weekend Feb 27-28, 2010

Here’s a look at some of our local program highlights and other shows you may enjoy on your weekend. This list is put together by the fine folks here at Iowa Public Television.

Tonight at 6:30, The Iowa Journal looks at the end of refugee resettlement programs by the state’s major refugee services agencies. Guests on the program include: John Wilken, bureau chief of the Iowa Bureau of Refugee Services; Jill Stuecker, director of the refugee resettlement program at Lutheran Services in Iowa; and Sol Varisco-Santini, program director of outreach services with Catholic Charities in Des Moines. The program can also be seen at 8:30 a.m. Saturday on IPTV WORLD.

Next week the Journal will look at mental health services in Iowa.

State Rep. Kevin McCarthy (D-Des Moines) and State Rep. Kraig Paulsen (R-Hiawatha) are the guests on the tonight’s Iowa Press, at 7:30. The guests will discuss the business of the Iowa House of Representatives this session. The program can also be seen at 9 a.m. on IPTV WORLD, and at 11:30 a.m. Sunday on IPTV.

Volunteer firefighters are making a difference in rural America, some farmers are embracing biotechnology, and things are looking up for the nation’s livestock producers. Want to know more? Watch Market to Market tonight at 8 on IPTV, tomorrow at 8 a.m. on IPTV WORLD, and Sunday at noon on IPTV.

Saturday at 6 p.m., tune in to IPTV WORLD for IPTV’s own Intelligent Talk Television: The Skeptical Environmentalist’s Guide to Global Warming, featuring environmentalist and conservative Bjorn Lomborg during a speech he gave in Iowa.

A mining engineer is caught in a conspiracy after the death of a British spy found in his apartment during Masterpiece Classic: The 39 Steps, airing Sunday at 8 p.m.

Start March with a First Lady! Monday at 8 p.m., catch an all-new Dolley Madison: American Experience, which tells the story of the first First Lady to create political and social style for the nation.

Astrophysicist Neal deGrasse Tyson focuses on Pluto’s discovery and the science that surrounds this former planet during NOVA: Pluto Files, Tuesday at 7 p.m.

On Wednesday at 8 p.m. on IPTV WORLD, Independent Lens presents Herb and Dorothy, the story of the Vogel family’s significant contemporary art collection. Works from the Vogel collection are currently on display at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art.

Thursday at 9 p.m. don’t miss part one of an all-new Waking the Dead. When a nurse defends her daughter from a mugger, the Cold Case team discovers that her DNA matches that found at a crime scene in the 1990s.

The next few days on IPTV

Here’s a look at some of our programming here on Iowa Public Television.

Tonight (Friday) at 6:30, The Iowa Journal examines the potential for flooding in Iowa following this winter’s relentless snows. The program can also be seen at 8:30 a.m. Saturday on IPTV WORLD. Guests include Kamyar Enshayan, city council member in Cedar Falls, David Miller is the Administrator for Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division and Marty Adkins. Marty works for the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. You read more on the background of the show here. (Here’s a secret, you can watch the show already here.)

Steve Scheffler and Doug Gross are the guests on the tonight’s Iowa Press, at 7:30. Scheffler is a member of the Republican National Committee and the Iowa Christian Alliance, and Gross is a Des Moines attorney and former Republican candidate for Governor. The guests will discuss Republican party politics in Iowa and across the nation, as well as campaign strategies for the 2010 election cycle.

Also Friday at 8, Market to Market looks at black farmers who are turning up the heat on the USDA, examines Texas’ challenge to the EPA’s findings on greenhouse gasses, and finds out how a lifelong dream to step back in time and harvest the old-fashioned way was fulfilled. The program will be rebroadcast on IPTV WORLD Saturday at 8 a.m., and on IPTV Sunday at noon. Or watch it online at http://www.iptv.org/mtom.

The 2009-10 College Wrestling season comes to a close Sunday with a full afternoon of wrestling action. At 2 p.m., Nebraska takes on Iowa State University in live coverage from Ames. At 4 p.m., watch coverage of the Iowa Conference Championships, featuring Iowa’s smaller colleges and universities. I could hold out on who won, but you already know that Wartburg College dominated this meet.

American Masters: Zora Neale Hurston: Jump at the Sun, airs Monday at 9 p.m. Learn the story of this uniquely successful writer – one of the most controversial figures of the Harlem Renaissance.
What killed America’s mammoths at the end of the last Ice Age? NOVA: Megabeasts Sudden Death, airing Tuesday at 7 p.m., investigates a provocative new theory.

The National Parks: America’s Best Idea: Great Nature (1933-1945) airs at 8 p.m. Wednesday. At a time of economic crisis and a world war, the parks provided a source of jobs and much-needed peace.
Eyes on the Prize II, A Special Presentation of “American Experience” airs Thursday at 10 p.m. on IPTV LEARNS. This episode covers race relations in America from 1968-1971.

Any thoughts on what we do here at IPTV? Send us your thoughts by visiting this page.

Look out Madison, here comes Market to Market

If you are in Wisconsin this week, keep your eyes peeled for some Iowa Public Television vehicles.

It is not a cross-border invasion of our public TV station taking over yours, but a remote production of the longest-running agri-business TV show “Market to Market.”

Much of the IPTV crew is on the road today heading for Madison. The show will record Wednesday and air Friday. The Market crew is working on a grant that’s helping bring the show to 4 states. A show already has aired from Shenandoah. Kansas and Nebraska will also see our crew make the trip.

Here’s part of the release from the University of Madison.

National agribusiness news program to tape town-hall event

Jan. 13, 2010

“Market to Market,” the nation’s longest-running agribusiness news show, will host a rural economic summit on Wednesday, Jan. 20, immediately following the Wisconsin Agricultural Economic Outlook Forum.

This summit, the second in a series examining the impact of the economic recession in rural America, will include an expert panel and a town-hall discussion focusing on the economic challenges confronting America’s dairy industry.

The rest of the release can be read here.