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For the Media
For Immediate Release
February 22, 2001
WETA Launches exploreDC.org
Most Comprehensive Web Site on Washington History, Heritage and Culture
One-Stop Site for Students, Teachers, Locals and Tourists
For students, teachers, locals and tourists, exploreDC.org is a one-stop Web site for an illustrative, informative and interactive guide to the history, heritage and culture of the nation's capital. Created by WETA Washington, D.C., the flagship public broadcaster in the capital region, www.exploreDC.org officially launches on February 22, 2001.
Listing nearly 1,000 resources, www.exploreDC.org includes more than 450 pages of text and nearly 300 images. In addition to the comprehensive essays and imagery, there are 50 audio and video files and 24 different lesson plans for teachers, making www.exploreDC.org a primary resource for those seeking to expand their knowledge of the nation's capital.
Visitors to www.exploreDC.org will be able to:
- Learn about the planning and building of the capital city and the Mall;
- Study the U.S. presidents and the institutions of American government;
- Take a virtual tour of Civil War sites in the region;
- Read about African-American life in Washington;
- Uncover fascinating stories of local history — tales of people and places in neighborhoods around town;
- Follow a timeline encompassing more than 600 highlighted historical events.
- Take a virtual tour of D.C. Civil War sites;
- Use the lesson plans for classroom study.
Visit the Lincoln Memorial online and listen to Walt Whitman's poem "O Captain! My Captain!" Read about D.C. during the Second World War and hear an essay on Harry Truman. Traverse the timeline looking at events during Teddy Roosevelt's years in Washington and travel down the Potomac River studying environmental science.
"Washington, D.C.'s story is, in many ways, America's story," said Pete Neal, Director of Education for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a funder of exploreDC.org. "The heritage of the capital embraces many of the pivotal issues and monumental figures of our country's history. Telling these stories is one of the cornerstones of public broadcasting, and an area in which WETA is an indisputable leader. Through support of this Web project, CPB and WETA are meeting our shared mission of providing informative and enlightening content through telecommunications, accessible to all Americans."
"ExploreDC.org is a portal to the nation's capital and a gateway to Washington, the home town; a civics lesson and a class on Duke Ellington; a profile of presidents and a picture of the city's triumphs and struggles," said Francine Zorn Trachtenberg, WETA senior vice president and executive producer of the project. "Our Web site is tailored for both students and individuals interested in the capital region and educators looking for depth."
In addition to Trachtenberg, the staff of www.exploreDC.org includes project manager Anne Harrington and a distinguished group of educators and historians serving as consultants and writers for the project.
Funding for www.exploreDC.org is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private, nonprofit corporation with the mission of facilitating the development and universal access to non-commercial, high quality programming and telecommunications services. Additional funding is provided by the Rice Family Foundation, supporting endeavors in health, education and the environment.
WETA TV 26 and 90.9 FM are public broadcasting stations serving Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia with educational, informational, cultural and public affairs programming and related services. WETA is the third largest producing station for public television. WETA productions and co-productions include "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," "Washington Week" and "In Performance at the White House," as well as documentaries by filmmaker Ken Burns, including "The Civil War," "Baseball" and "JAZZ." WETA-FM brings NPR news and public affairs programs such as Morning Edition and All Things Considered, to the audience along with classical music and an array of entertainment programming. WETA is committed to local connections through a variety of community outreach activities involving formal and informal learning in classrooms K-12; with pre-schoolchildren and caregivers; and partners in the fields of education and the arts. Sharon Percy Rockefeller is president and CEO of WETA. For more information on WETA see the Web site at http://www.weta.org.
For more information about exploreDC.org, contact Dewey Blanton, director of communications at: dblanton@weta.com or at: 703-998-2875.
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