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Coming in January on FRONTLINE

By

Patrice Taddonio

December 21, 2017

A little-known chapter of the financial crisis. Sexual abuse in the workplace. The refugee and migrant crisis. North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. FRONTLINE’s January 2018 lineup is one that spans the globe and digs deep domestically.

First, on January 2, catch an encore presentation of Abacus: Small Enough to Jail – a documentary from acclaimed director Steve James (Hoop Dreams, The Interrupters) that FRONTLINE received exciting news about earlier this month.

One of the most acclaimed documentaries of the year, Abacus chronicles one family’s fight to clear their names after their small bank in New York City’s Chinatown became the only U.S. bank prosecuted in relation to the 2008 financial crisis. The New York Times called Abacus “a classic underdog tale,” and The Hollywood Reporter said it’s “both an affirmation and an indictment of the American Dream.”

Then, amid an ongoing national movement that has exposed workplace sexual abuses in the highest levels of politics, media and entertainment, FRONTLINE on January 16 will air an updated version of its 2015 investigation, Rape on the Night Shift.

Produced in collaboration with the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley, UnivisionReveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting and KQED, the film examines how immigrant women in the janitorial industry are particularly vulnerable to sexual violence —  and that many dare not denounce their attackers for fear they’ll lose their jobs or be deported. Still, women went on camera to break their silence.

Next, on January 23, FRONTLINE continues its duPont-Columbia Award-winning reporting on the global migrant and refugee crisis in Exodus: The Journey Continues — following the intimate stories of people and families seeking a better life in Europe amid tightening borders and rising anti-immigrant sentiment on the continent.

And finally, on January 31, watch an encore presentation of North Korea’s Deadly Dictator — an investigation of who Kim Jong-un is and what he wants.

Here’s a closer look at FRONTLINE’s January lineup.

Jan. 2: Abacus: Small Enough to Jail

After the financial crash, big banks got bailouts. Abacus Federal Savings Bank faced charges. Go inside the saga of the the first bank indicted in New York since 1991, following how the bank’s indictment and subsequent trial forces its owners, the Sung family, to defend themselves — and their bank’s legacy in the Chinatown community — over the course of a five-year legal battle. Watch the trailer below, and see the full film online now or on PBS January 2.

Jan. 16: Rape on the Night Shift

As the #MeToo movement continues, catch an update to this investigation uncovering the sexual abuse of immigrant women who clean the malls where you shop, the banks where you do business, and the offices where you work. Watch a trailer below, and see the original film here.

Jan. 23: Exodus: The Journey Continues

In 2016, in Exodus, FRONTLINE chronicled the dangerous journey millions of people have made in search of safety and a better life in Europe, drawing on camera and smartphone footage filmed by refugees and migrants themselves. Amid the ongoing crisis, Exodus: The Journey Continues follows these personal journeys over two years, as countries become less welcoming to those seeking refuge. Watch the first Exodus documentary below.

Jan. 30: North Korea’s Deadly Dictator

Amid escalating tensions with the U.S., watch an investigation of who killed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s half-brother — and what it reveals about the leader, his regime and its broader intentions. Here’s a trailer, or see the full film online here.

Check your local PBS listings for air times.

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Patrice Taddonio.
Patrice Taddonio

Senior Digital Writer, FRONTLINE

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