Discovery Special Taps White House Chief Of Staffs

Pasadena,
Calif.--Discovery Channel will go behind the scenes at the White House
with a new special later this year, one
of several Discovery-owned network announcements made during the
company’s 2013 Television Critics Association winter press tour here
Saturday.


Discovery Channel’s
The Presidents’ Gatekeepers, which will premiere later this year,
will feature interviews with 19 White House chiefs of staffs over six
Presidential administrations as they talk about key moments and headed
debates that helped shape history, according
to network officials.


--Animal Planet will focus on the illegal killing of rhinos as part of a three-part miniseries debuting March 7.
Battleground: Rhino Wars follows a South African anti-poaching unit trying to stop the illegal trade of rhino horns, according to
Marjorie Kaplan, president and general manager of Animal Planet.


--Science Channel on Jan. 19 will launch a new series based on the
Stuff You Should Know podcast. The series of the same name
features Discovery employees Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant as create a
“mockumentary” around parts of their popular podcast, said Debbie Adler
Myers, general manager and executive vice president
for Science Channel. The network will also return for a third season
the Ricky Gervais-produced franchise
An Idiot Abroad.

--Investigation Discovery will air a pair of specials in February with a focus on civil rights and racial profiling.
March To Justice, premiering Feb. 25, will feature first-person
recollections from Civil Rights moment luminaries as they discuss the
events that crystallized the 1960’s movement.
The Injustice Files: Hood Of Suspicion, debuting Feb. 13,
looks at three distinct cases that illustrate how self-defense practices discriminate against African Americans, according to Henry Schleiff, president and general manager, Investigation Discovery.

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.