Next week, our 44th season will begin on PBS and online with a documentary that’s been 14 years in the making.

Our 90-minute season premiere tells the stories of the now-grown children at the heart of our Emmy-nominated 2012 documentary Poor Kids — chronicling their lives from childhood to the present day, and offering a powerful, personal and longitudinal look at the realities of growing up in poverty in the U.S.

The documentary is called Born Poor, and it’s the kind of thoughtful, time-intensive journalism that the American public’s support — through grants administered by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting — has helped to make possible for decades.

Now, CPB is winding down its operations, following Congress’ passage this summer of a package rescinding public media funding. So, in addition to sharing details about our new season, I wanted to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to CPB. This American institution has meant so much to FRONTLINE for so many years, and we are deeply thankful for its long and meaningful support.

There’s no way around the fact that the lack of federal funding will have a big impact on FRONTLINE and all of us in public media. Thanks in no small part to the vital support of viewers like you, though, I am determined that FRONTLINE’s work will endure, that we will keep telling the stories that matter — and that we will “keep the public in public media” by continuing to make our journalism paywall-free and accessible to all.

Now more than ever, your direct support will be an essential component of our future. If you are able to make a donation to FRONTLINE today — whether it’s $5 or $50 — I can promise you it will go a long way in supporting the painstaking work that goes into producing independent, deeply reported journalism.

We remain steadfast and focused on the important work ahead.

Two weeks after the Oct. 7 premiere of Born Poor, we’ll present The Rise of RFK Jr., looking at how the scion of a storied dynasty endured tragedy and scandal, broke with the Democratic Party and his family, stoked conspiracy theories, and is reshaping government and public health.

As our season continues, we’ll also bring you the broadcast premiere of FRONTLINE and The Associated Press’ 2000 Meters to Andriivka — the second feature documentary from the Oscar-winning team behind 20 Days in Mariupol. It premiered at Sundance and was called “one of the best combat films ever made” (Documentary Magazine).

We’ve also just released a seminal FRONTLINE documentary, The O.J. Verdict, on YouTube for the first time, at pbs.org/frontline and in the PBS App, as the 30th anniversary of the verdict that shook America approaches.

And we’re hard at work on stories about El Salvador, Iran and Afghanistan, and more.

Stay tuned as well for the unveiling of our redesigned website — making all of this journalism easier to find and engage with than ever before.

We are grateful to you for your trust and your belief in the importance of independent journalism, now and far into the future. Your support will help to make our continued work possible.

– Raney Aronson-Rath
FRONTLINE Editor-in-Chief & Executive Producer

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