WETA in Washington, D.C., and PBS News will launch two new weekend programs, Horizons From PBS News and Compass Points From PBS News, in January to replace PBS News Weekend.
New Weekend Programs to Debut in January
Both programs will be 30 minutes long. Horizons From PBS News will be hosted by William Brangham and will focus on science, health and technology. Compass Points From PBS News, a foreign affairs program, will be hosted by Nick Schifrin.
Horizons is scheduled to premiere Saturday, Jan. 17, at 6 p.m. Eastern time, while Compass Points will premiere at the same time on Sunday, Jan. 18. Both programs will also be streamed online and distributed as video podcasts.
The announcement follows WETA’s decision last month to end broadcasts of PBS News Weekend as part of a restructuring due to the rescission of federal funding for public media. A station spokesperson previously indicated that two new programs would take its place.
“As we lay out the next chapter of PBS News’ multi-platform programming, we are delighted to launch two new weekend broadcasts, both of which will build on existing editorial strengths of our newsroom and allow us to dive deeper into topics our audiences care about deeply,” said Sara Just, PBS News senior EP and WETA SVP, in a news release. “As we have found with the success of Washington Week with The Atlantic, there is a growing and hungry audience for deep, nuanced conversations with knowledgeable guests that help shed light on critical issues and are a welcome break from some of the bite-sized, headline-grabbing news that proliferates so much these days.”
Horizons will explore a single issue each week, with planned topics including the artificial intelligence race, medical advancements and climate science. Brangham joined PBS News Hour in 2013 as a producer and correspondent, later becoming a substitute anchor. He previously worked for the WNET Group in New York and NOW on PBS, and was a producer for Bill Moyers. Talesha Reynolds will serve as the EP of Horizons, also holding a role as a senior producer of content and special projects for News Hour.
Each episode of Compass Points will examine how the American government’s interests and power influence global affairs. The show will feature a panel of experts, including journalists and former government officials. Schifrin joined PBS News Hour in 2015 as a special correspondent and became foreign affairs and defense correspondent in 2018. His News Hour series, Inside Putin’s Russia, won a 2017 Peabody Award. He was also part of teams awarded a 2021 Peabody for COVID-19 coverage and a 2023 duPont-Columbia Award for coverage of Afghanistan and Ukraine. Before joining News Hour, Schifrin was a foreign correspondent for NPR, Al Jazeera America and ABC News, reporting from London, Jerusalem, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Stephanie Kotuby will serve as the EP for Compass Points, also holding the role of EP for Washington Week with The Atlantic and as a senior editorial producer for PBS News Hour.
The final broadcast of PBS News Weekend is scheduled for Jan. 11.
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