Fans Join the History Hunt by Retracing Investigations, Taking an Interactive Civil War “Trip,” Watching Exclusive Online and Mobile Premieres, Earning Engagement Stickers and More
ARLINGTON, VA; JUNE 14, 2011 – HISTORY DETECTIVES, the PBS summer favorite that proves that an object found in an attic or backyard might be anything but ordinary, celebrates the kickoff of its captivating ninth season this June with a newly re-launched website and lively interactive and exclusive content to engage viewers on mobile devices, on the web and through social networking applications Facebook, Gowalla and GetGlue — including online sneak peeks, sticker incentives and a specially designed interactive “trip” to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.
HISTORY DETECTIVES’ ninth season premieres on a new night and time on Tuesday, June 21, 2011, at 8:00 p.m. ET and airs on Tuesday nights throughout the summer on PBS.
WATCH FULL-LENGTH SNEAK PEEKS ONLINE AND ON MOBILE EVERY WEEK
Every week this summer, fans can watch a special sneak peek of each HISTORY DETECTIVES episode on pbs.org; on the PBS mobile apps for iPhone, iPod and iPad; and on the PBS Facebook page, beginning today, Tuesday, June 14, 2011, with the pre-release of the entire “Yakima Canutt’s Saddle” story from the premiere episode. This story reveals the history of a saddle that may have once belonged to Hollywood legend and rodeo champion Yakima Canutt. One full-length story from every episode will be available for streaming five days before each broadcast all summer long. After each episode premieres, the full episodes will be available for streaming on all of PBS’ platforms.
CHECK IN WITH THE DETECTIVES ON GETGLUE AND GOWALLA
Each Tuesday night, during the TV broadcast, HISTORY DETECTIVES invites viewers to check in with GetGlue — the media check-in service which recently crossed the one million user threshold — by offering special stickers for checking in to the show. Loyal viewers have the opportunity to collect stickers of each HISTORY DETECTIVES host by logging on for specific broadcasts and to share their activities with their friends and other GetGlue users.
After PBS’ successful work with Gowalla on a “trip” for the show FREEDOM RIDERS, PBS is teaming up with the location check-in service again, offering viewers a chance to discover more details about the unique places to which the HISTORY DETECTIVES travels to conduct its research. The series commemorates the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War by offering a special Civil War Gowalla trip, highlighting some of the Civil War museums and sites featured in the series. Visitors will learn about each destination’s role in the HISTORY DETECTIVES investigation and are invited to tune in to watch the mystery unfold.
EXPLORE MORE WITH A NEW HISTORY DETECTIVES WEBSITE
HISTORY DETECTIVES has introduced a newly enhanced website at pbs.org/historydetectives, where fans can delve into all things historical. The new site offers users an opportunity to access nearly 300 past investigations, searchable by era, by topic, by host or by keyword, covering subjects from the American Revolution to space exploration to the birth of hip hop.
One of the key, interactive features on the site is a Google map allowing viewers to pinpoint where HISTORY DETECTIVES stories have taken place. Fans can also view streaming video of the individual stories or entire episodes, converse about their favorite cases and learn how to conduct their own investigations. The site will be continuously updated with the latest HISTORY DETECTIVES stories, valuable detective techniques, behind-the-scenes videos, lesson plans for educators and an insider blog.
CONNECT WITH THE HISTORY DETECTIVES ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER
The HISTORY DETECTIVES Facebook page, facebook.com/historydetectives, continues to update fans on the progress of investigations and invites them to share their thoughts about each episode. PBS will also notify users when an upcoming episode features a location in their geographic area. Fans can “Like” HISTORY DETECTIVES on Facebook at facebook.com/historydetectives and follow the detectives on Twitter at twitter.com/histdetectives to keep track of the hosts in the field and to help them out on their investigations.
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CONTACT: Eileen Campion Dera, Roslan & Campion, Inc. – Public Relations 212-966-4600 / Eileen@drcpublicrelations.com
Pat Kruis Oregon Public Broadcasting 503-293-1933 / pkruis@opb.org
Clare Bender PBS 703-739-8681 / cmbender@pbs.org
For images, video and additional up-to-date information on HISTORY DETECTIVES and other PBS programs, visit PBS PressRoom at pbs.org/pressroom.
