PBS Remembers September 11th

For the greatest generation, it was Pearl Harbor. For baby boomers, it was the assassination of John F. Kennedy. For children of the new millennium, it will no doubt be Sept. 11 a day of such import that they'll forever remember where they were and what they were doing when the towers fell and the world changed. As the nation honors the one-year anniversary of Sept. 11, PBS presents a selection of programs that salutes the heroes, memorializes the departed and analyzes the attacks and their aftermath.

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The commemorative programming begins with Frontline's Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero, airing Tuesday, Sept. 3 at 9 pm. Ground Zero in Manhattan has become a place of pilgrimage; thousands of people visit the site, looking for consolation as they question the events of Sept. 11th. This two-hour program explores how survivors, families and friends are coping with difficult questions of good and evil, God's role in such events and the potential for darkness within religion itself. The program repeats Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 8 pm.

On Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 8 pm, National Geographic Specials presents Ambassador: Under Fire Overseas. This special goes behind embassy walls, with unprecedented access to those who keep America's international relations stable and strong in the midst of crisis and calm. The program repeats Monday, Sept. 9 at 9 pm.

Surviving September 11th: The Story of One New York Family, airing Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 9:30 pm, tells the story of one family three generations who found themselves less than a block away from the World Trade Center as the horrifying events of that day unfolded.

The lives of Arab immigrants have been changed forever. Caught in the Crossfire: Arab Americans in Wartime, airing Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 10 pm, interweaves the tales of three individuals whose burdens are multiplied tenfold by 9/11 and its aftermath.

Another Frontline program, The Campaign Against Terror, airing Sunday, Sept. 8 at 9 pm, recounts for the first time on television the behind-the-scenes story of the U.S. and world response to the terrorist attacks on America.

Hard hit in the attacks, the Fire Department of New York City lost 343 firefighters at the World Trade Center. Heroes of Ground Zero: New York's Bravest, airing Monday, Sept. 9 at 8 pm, captures the shock, despair, determination, professionalism and hope of the firefighters in the weeks immediately following the attacks and later as they struggle to adjust to their changed lives.

On the eve of the anniversary, NOVA reprises Why the Towers Fell, airing Tuesday, Sept. 10 at 8 pm. The program follows a team of forensic engineers as they determine how a steel behemoth so massive that it had its own zip code could be reduced to 150 feet of dust and rubble.

On Sept. 11, 252 international flights carrying nearly 44,000 dazed and frightened passengers - most of them Americans traveling home - were suddenly grounded in Canada. Stranded Yanks: A Diary Between Friends, airing Tuesday, Sept. 10 at 9 pm, documents a five-day period, from Sept. 11 to Sept. 16, when Canadians opened their hearts and homes to those in need.

Immediately following Stranded Yanks, America Rebuilds at 10 pm examines the process of cleaning up Ground Zero and the engineering challenges faced by the workers on site.

On Wednesday, Sept. 11, PBS presents an encore of Frontline's Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero at 8 pm, followed by A Requiem for September 11th at 10 pm. This live concert features the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra offering a stirring performance of one of the most moving musical works ever composed: Giuseppe Verdi's Requiem.

Immediately following Requiem is Aftermath at 10:40 pm, a simple, narrative-free tribute to a few of the thousands of people who died that day.

Reading Rainbow Remembers

To supplement PBS 45 & 49's We Remember initiative, Reading Rainbow premieres new four episodes with themes closely tied to the emotions and issues of Sept. 11:

The Tin Forest
Tuesday, Sept. 3 at 10 am
Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 10 am

Max
Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 10 am
Tuesday, Sept. 10 at 10 am

Enemy Pie
Thursday, Sept. 5 at 10 am
Monday, Sept. 9 at 10 am

Our Big Home: An Earth Poem
Friday, Sept. 6 at 10 am
Friday, Sept. 13 at 10 am

On the Web

Find more Sept. 11 materials for students go to Commemorating Sept. 11th.