WNET.ORG to Open New Production Facility and TV Studio on Lincoln Center Campus

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and WNET.ORG jointly announce that a street-level, glass-walled production facility and television studio will open spring 2009 on the Lincoln Center campus, at the corner of Broadway and 66th Street. The leased space will be used for the production of programming for two of WNET.ORG's media outlets, Thirteen and WLIW21, the most-watched and the third most-watched public television stations in the nation. The new facility will enable WNET.ORG to offer different types of programs for New York and national audiences and opens the way for new collaborative programming between WNET.ORG and Lincoln Center. The two-level, multipurpose space is part of the dramatic transformation of Lincoln Center, making the campus more transparent and welcoming:

The facility will be the production site for Worldfocus-the new international news program launched in October-which airs in New York, on public television stations across the country, and online. In addition, the studio will be used for the production of Thirteen's weekly arts showcase SundayArts, which debuted this spring. Located in the newly expanded building housing Alice Tully Hall and The Juilliard School, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in association with FX Fowle, the new production facility will be designed so that the public and passersby can see the programming activity in the studio.

Both Lincoln Center and WNET began operating in the early 1960s, a time of heady growth in New York's cultural and educational sphere. Lincoln Center was the first organization in the United States to bring together major cultural institutions on one campus in the heart of a city. WNET.ORG's Thirteen, which predated the launch of PBS by eight years, was one of the country's earliest public television broadcasters. The two institutions have a long history of collaborative programming, including the Emmy Award-winning Live From Lincoln Center. The new project opens another phase in the ongoing relationship between WNET.ORG and Lincoln Center.

Said Neal Shapiro, CEO and President of WNET.ORG:

"With this new facility, we are bringing WNET.ORG into the life of the city in a new way, enabling New Yorkers and visitors to see into the production process and working with Lincoln Center to add a new dynamism to one of the great streetscapes of New York. Like Lincoln Center, WNET.ORG is international in scope, but firmly rooted in this metropolis. Both organizations share a commitment to enriching the cultural and intellectual life of this city and this new facility will provide almost boundless ways to do so."

Noted Reynold Levy, President of Lincoln Center:

"We look forward to working with WNET.ORG and exploring many opportunities to develop new collaborative programming in the future. WNET.ORG's expertise and broadcast experience, and the new production facilities, are a wonderful complement to the array of superb cultural organizations already resident on our 16 acres. This additional communications technology capacity is in keeping with our overall goal of making Lincoln Center more transparent and accessible."

Said James Tisch, Chairman, WNET.ORG:

"WNET.ORG is one of the great civic and cultural institutions in New York, and a leader in bringing new ideas and new experiences to its audiences. The deepening of the long-standing relationship between the nation's most watched public media provider and its most renowned performing arts center is a hallmark of what is possible in this unique city. I know this project will add a vibrant new element to both organizations and enrich the lives of people in New York and around the country."

Commented Frank A. Bennack, Jr., Chairman of Lincoln Center:

"This agreement marks an unprecedented arrangement between two of New York's leading cultural institutions, with many benefits that will accrue not just to the community, but to New York in general. It reflects a commitment to further engage a broad and diverse audience, a commitment that is particularly timely as we approach Lincoln Center's 50th anniversary in May, 2009."

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (LCPA) serves three primary roles: presenter of superb artistic programming, national leader in arts and education and community relations, and manager of the Lincoln Center campus. The Lincoln Center campus unites 12 of the finest performing arts and educational organizations located anywhere. After nearly 50 years of artistic excellence and service to its community, the nation, and to the world, it has embarked upon a major transformation initiative to fully modernize its concert halls and public spaces, renew its 16-acre urban campus, and reinforce its vitality for decades to come. For more information, visit LincolnCenter.org.

New York public media company WNET.ORG is a pioneering provider of television and web content. The parent of Thirteen, WLIW21, and Creative News Group, WNET.ORG brings such acclaimed broadcast series and websites as Worldfocus, Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, Charlie Rose, Wide Angle, Secrets of the Dead, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly, Visions, Consuelo Mack WealthTrack, Wild Chronicles, Miffy and Friends, and Cyberchase to national and international audiences. Through its wide range of channels and platforms, WNET.ORG serves the entire New York City metro area with unique local productions, broadcasts and innovative educational and cultural projects. In all that it does, WNET.ORG pursues a single, overarching goal - to create media experiences of lasting significance for New York, America, and the world.

PHOTO:WNET.ORG's Lincoln Center studios, rendered by a+i architecture, pc