Inside PBS Blog

One of the things we've learned at PBS Engage during the past week â€" and let's face it, we've learned a lot â€" is that many of you are beginning to watch TV differently, sometimes "consuming" PBS content online.

As a certain pointy-eared Vulcan says, "Fascinating."

David Fanning, the genius behind PBS's "Frontline," has said the show he puts on the air each Tuesday night--some episodes of which are in production for months and are always based on exhaustive research--is essentially an "executive summary" of the all the content that has been gathered. A lot of the rest is available on the program's Web site where visitors find all kinds of online extras, including streaming video, essays and a "teacher center" for educators who want to bring "Frontline" into their classrooms.

"Frontline" isn't alone.

The newsmagazine "Now on PBS" has also embraced the Web.

Take last week's show, a special report on the rise of for-profit prisons in the United States.

Senior correspondent Maria Hinojosa and the "Now" team began working on the story last December, gathering far more information and footage than they could squeeze into 26 minutes of airtime.

So Maria also penned an online "reporter's notebook" item on her investigation and filed a Web-only four-minute report on immigrant detention centers.

The "Now" producers also opened the show's online feedback forum to viewers who want to share their thoughts on Maria's investigation.

The idea is to use the Web to complement what viewers see on-air, Maria says.

As for the investigation itself, Maria believes this is one of the more important "Now" stories she's worked on since joining the show three years ago.

Says Maria: "What does it say about who we are as a society when we are at the point that it is deemed entirely logical and appropriate to have a prison being run for profit?"

What do you think of the "multi-platform" approach "Now" takes to stories like Maria's for-profit prison investigation? Do these productions provide deeper context? Do you consume content both on-air and online? Or just one?

Share your thoughts in the comments section below.