Experience Novel World Views & Stories in Four New Global Voices Documentaries

BOSTON, July 31, 2014  /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- This August, WORLD Channel's original international series, Global Voices, continues to bring stories from around the globe to the American living room as four new films make U.S. broadcast premieres this month.

On August 10th, follow the story of Uyghur shepherd Parhat Ablat, a 20-year-old who attends the racially segregated Xinjiang University in China's Xinjiang Province - a region that is harshly divided between an indigenous Muslim minority and the ruling Han Chinese. Diamond in the Dunes tells of Ablat's fraught quest to raise his people out of what he calls their "spirit sickness," and show that baseball is more than a game - it's a vehicle for transformation.

Before the Revolution reveals a new perspective on a revolution that changed the world. Using rare archive footage from the 60s and 70s, and interviews with diplomats, Mossad agents, businessmen and their families, on August 17th, the film journeys back to the last days of the Israeli community in Iran on the eve of the Islamic revolution.

In Antarctica by accident? For the few scientific teams who brave this beautiful and silent landscape, it feels like another planet. On August 24th, Ice People goes on one of the earth's most extreme journeys and offers an intimate view into what drives dedicated researchers to leave the world behind in pursuit of science and capture the true experience of living and working in this extreme environment. Their discoveries yield secrets about the Earth's past and future, and prompt questions about our place in the world.

Here Comes Uncle Joe isn't about an uncle named Joe. However, to 800 elderly people in remote villages in South Korea, this deliveryman is almost the only contact they have with the modern world. As the young leave these rural areas to acquire higher education and to find high salary jobs in the cities, there are no services or people to support the elderly. Uncle Joe becomes the only man for the old. During the August 31st premiere, see how Uncle Joe serves these communities with humor and attention, how love and friendship are infused in life, and how he overcomes his conflicts with his friends.

"Global Voices takes viewers beyond our borders, sharing personal stories and insights from around the globe. We are extremely excited to continue offer these diverse perspectives from so many different countries and cultures," says Chris Hastings, executive producer, WORLD Channel.

Open your eyes and ears by tuning into Global Voices, and experience what fellow global citizens have to say. Check your local listings and get more info about WORLD Channel programming at www.worldchannel.org. Viewers can also join the discussion on Facebook and Twitter.

About WORLD Channel:
The WORLD Channel is a 24/7, multicast channel dedicated to delivering the best of public television's nonfiction, news and documentary programming as well as a growing schedule of original content from independent producers and communities of difference. The complementary website, www.WORLDchannel.org, expands on broadcast topics and fuels content across social media, providing opportunities for broad and diverse audience interaction. WORLD Channel is produced by WGBH/Boston, in partnership with American Public Television and WNET/New York, and in association with the Public Broadcasting Service and the National Educational Telecommunications Association. Funding for WORLD Channel is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Ford Foundation. Additional funding for "America ReFramed" is provided by the MacArthur Foundation.

ABOUT Independent Television Service:
Independent Television Service (ITVS) funds, presents, and promotes award-winning documentaries on public television, innovative new media projects on the Web, and the Emmy® Award-winning weekly series Independent Lens on Monday nights at 10 p.m. on PBS. Mandated by Congress in 1988 and funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, ITVS has brought thousands of independently produced programs to American audiences. For more visit itvs.org.

Contact:   
Mandy Miller, 
National Marketing, WGBH
617-300-5334
mandy_miller@wgbh.org      

SOURCE WORLD Channel