Forum 360

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Monday, Aug. 2, at 5 & 5:30 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Mondays at 8 PM
Saturdays at 5 PM

This public affairs series provides a local viewpoint on global topics. Topics covered are
both educational and entertaining and are hosted by a Northeast Ohio community
member who assists in determining the show’s content.

Lines Broken: The Story of Marion Motley

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Tuesday, Aug. 3, at 10 PM
Wednesday, Aug. 4, at 3 AM
Wednesday, Aug. 18, at 5 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 6, at 10 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 3 PM

LINES BROKEN tells the story of Marion Motley, who was one of pro football’s first African American players. His story is one of adversity, personal tragedy and triumphs, described using rarely heard archival interviews and new interviews with historians, friends and descendants. 

Black College Football Hall of Fame: Journey to Canton

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Tuesday, Aug. 3, at 10:30 PM
Wednesday, Aug. 4, at 3:30 AM
Wednesday, Aug. 18, at 5:30 PM 
Thursday, Aug. 19, at midnight

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 6, at 10:30 PM 
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 3:30 PM

This local production tells the story of the formation of Black college football, the contributions that players from historically Black colleges and universities have made to the NFL, the founding of its hall of fame and why the hall is in the unexpected location of Canton, Ohio.

Joseph O’Sickey: The Art of Life

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Wednesday, Aug. 4, at 10 PM
Thursday, Aug. 5, at 3 AM
Monday, Aug. 16, at 5 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 5 AM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 6, at 9 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 6 PM

This 2013 PBS Western Reserve documentary celebrates the life and career of Kent-based artist Joseph O’Sickey. At age 94 at his home, O’Sickey discussed the evolution of his painting style, his devotion to the practice of sketching and his more-than-60-year love affair with his late wife, Algesa. 

Studio C Sessions

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Fridays, Aug. 6 & 13, at 8:30 PM
Saturdays, Aug. 7 & 14, at 1:30 AM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Sunday at 8 PM

Recorded live in a subterranean bunker of a studio on the backstreets of Akron, STUDIO
C SESSIONS are live performances that capture artists and audiences connecting in the
closest of confines. To experience these unique concerts live, you have to be a member
of The Summit FM, a public radio station serving Akron, Canton and Youngstown. But
now PBS Western Reserve and The Summit are teaming up to share highlights of these
intimate music moments on PBS Western Reserve.

Generations: Cuyahoga Valley National Park

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Saturday, Aug. 7, at 1 PM
Wednesday, Aug. 11, at 10 PM
Thursday, Aug. 12, at 3 AM
Monday, Aug. 16, at 4 AM
Thursday, Aug. 19, at 5 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Fusion on Friday, Aug. 13, at 9 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 2 PM

Discover the story of Ohio’s only national park in this one-hour PBS Western Reserve production. It tells the story of the park’s natural wonders and the people whose lives have crossed its many paths. High definition cameras capture the beauty of the park—its crooked river, layers of ledges, waterfalls and centuries-old forests.

Séances & Slot Machines: The Story of Brady Lake Park

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Saturday, Aug. 7, at 6 PM
Tuesday, Aug. 17, at 5 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 6, at 8 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 1 PM

Brady Lake Park, located between Kent and Ravenna, opened in 1891 as a beautiful, rustic resort. It closed six decades later as a tired and seedy gambling den run by the Cleveland mob.

Along the way it was operated by Spiritualists, who offered a carousel and concessions along with séances and fortune telling, and by wheeler-dealers, who brought in big-name entertainers including Guy Lombardo and Rudy Vallee.

Nick Cave: Summit Lake—Heard

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Saturday, Aug. 7, at 8:30 PM
Sunday, Aug. 8, at 12:30 AM
Tuesday, Aug. 24, at 5 PM
Wednesday, Aug. 25, at 3:30 AM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 20, at 10 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 7 PM

This 2021 PBS Western Reserve production brings to life the transformational journey of a small, urban community in Akron, touched by a unique performance by internationally renowned artist Nick Cave.

An Answer from Akron

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Tuesday, Aug. 10, at 8 PM
Sunday, Aug. 8, at 4:30 AM
Wednesday, Aug. 11, at 1 AM
Monday, Aug. 23, at 5 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 13, at 8 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 5 PM
 

Learn how local members of Alpha Phi Alpha combatted racial barriers and ultimately succeeded in building affordable housing for those in need. While similar projects in other cities have failed and been demolished, those in Akron continue to thrive and serve their original purpose.

Under Fire, Under Siege: Strike Breakers in Kent, Ohio

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Thursday, Aug. 12, at 10 PM
Friday, Aug. 13, at 3 AM 
Friday, Aug. 20, at 5 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 13, at 10 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 4 PM
 

In 1936, two truckloads of Cleveland strikebreakers crashed through a peaceful picket line in Kent, Ohio. They fired sawed-off shotguns and tear gas in an attempt to intimidate the workers and break a six-week-old strike at the Black & Decker Co. The strikebreakers not only failed to end the strike but had the tables reversed on them as strikers and sympathizers fired rifles at them for six hours.

Around Akron with Blue Green

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Tuesday, Aug. 17, at 3:30 AM
Wednesday, Aug. 18, at 4:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 21, at 1:30 PM
Sunday, Aug. 22, at 3:30 PM & 11:30 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 11 AM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Sunday, Aug. 1, at 7:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 14, at 3:30 PM
Thursday, Aug. 19, at 7 PM
Friday, Aug. 20, at 9 PM
Saturday, Aug. 21, at 2:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 28, at 7 PM
Sunday, Aug. 29, at noon
 

This monthly half-hour series is the work of Akron producer Blue Green, who says, “The
goal of the show is to shine a spotlight on all of the good things that Akron has to offer.”
Green noted that the city of Akron is a wonderful place in which to live, work, stay and
play, but he feels “to truly be a great city, we need our own Akron-based news and local
television programming.” Each show consists of four stories, including segments on dining, arts and culture, history, business, and movers and shakers.

Stark County Courthouse: 200 Years of History, Community and Justice

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Tuesday, Aug. 24, at 5:30 PM

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 20, at 10:30 PM 
Sunday, Aug. 29, at 12:30 PM
 

Stark County has had a courthouse on the same site in the heart of downtown Canton for more than 200 years. The building breathes history as the place where a very young William McKinley began his path to the White House and, tragically, where a nation mourned his assassination. Structurally, the iconic building’s angels and unique architectural details make it a gem among Ohio’s 88 courthouses.

East Liverpool, Ohio: My Town

PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):

Monday, Aug. 30, at 10 PM
Tuesday, Aug. 31, at 3 AM 

Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):

Friday, Aug. 20, at 9:30 PM
 

East Liverpool has faced challenges similar of many Rust Belt towns, including job losses and declining population. However, the depressed area’s young people are now returning home with a vision for a new tomorrow. Several alumni, with talents ranging from jazz singing to marketing and architecture, bring an innovative spirit to the challenge of revitalizing their hometown.