Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Ziegler Foundation and the Ziegler Art Museum.

Located in Jennings City Hall, the museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

And viewers like you.

Thank you.

Hi everyone.

I'm Christina Jensen, and welcome to a special episode of Louisiana, the State we're in.

And I'm Charlie Whinham and it's a little guest appearance for the 50th anniversary show.

And it's great to be back.

50 years ago, on November 12th, 1976, the first episode of Louisiana State were in hit the airwaves.

Over the past five decades, this program has covered the people, issues, and events that have really shaped our state.

Let's go back to where it all began.

That first broadcast examined and an issue that continues to make headlines today conditions at Angola Prison.

The following is a production of the Public Affairs Department of WLPB.

Louisiana.

The state we're in.

With public affairs director Beth George.

Good evening.

Thank you for joining us on this first edition of Louisiana, the State we're In.

Tonight we examine with our guests and on film, the state prison at Angola.

We have with us this evening three knowledgeable guests.

We have Mister C, Paul Phelps, who is secretary and head of the Department of Corrections.

We also have with us doctor Mark Carlton, research director for the Public Affairs Research Council, former professor of history at LSU and author of a book on the history of Louisiana's penal system.

And finally, we have with us this evening Representative Bobby Freeman of Plaquemine.

Louisiana State representative, who is one of Governor Edwards, chief floor leaders in the House and a member of the House Appropriations Committee.

Angola has been in the news almost constantly since June 1975, when Federal District Judge E Gordon West issued a court order declaring the prison overcrowded and the living conditions deplorable.

The state we're in was innovative in that it was the only program at the time covering topics that impacted people across Louisiana, not just in the major cities.

Yeah, one of the key figures in the early development of the show was Clay Fourrier who served as the executive producer for several decades.

Clay, thank you so much for being here.

It's fantastic to be here.

It's amazing that I'm actually here for the 50th anniversary of this show that I helped start.

How did the show get it start?

Well, first of all, it took us all a bunch of young people a while to actually get the station on the air, channel 27, and we were so happy getting that there.

And then someone turned around and said, you know, the FCC requires that you do community programing and most commercial stations get used news programing for that.

So the executive director knew of this.

Radio reporter Beth hired her and she started coming up with ideas.

She had the Rolodex to get the people in, to be able to put together a public affairs program.

That's kind of how I began.

We're talking about 50 years ago.

I got to ask you about, oh, what kind of technology are we talking about?

Way back in 1976.

Well, you saw it all there at the beginning.

It was basically going to be a in an interview show.

So I made this gigantic pod we called it with wonderful shag carpeting on it like that, so that Beth could actually interview people that should bring in.

We had no video cameras at that point to go out into the field.

So there was an old 16mm blue camera.

We'd pile about a couple of minutes worth of footage in that we would shoot that, we'd bring it back.

Nothing in the audio.

Beth would just voice over that and then we'd go to the studio.

A year later, we had the first video camera so we could actually get out into the field and become an actual real news magazine.

So, Clay, the first years, what was some of the initial topics of importance?

What did you really want to focus on?

What did Beth really want to focus on?

Well, I'll tell you one thing.

The fact is that basically in Louisiana, we always said that politics was a spectator sport, and politics was number one with Beth.

So there was a lot about what was going on at the Capitol, the legislature.

There was also a lot with business and industry, two unions, labor unions, everything like that.

We covered all that along with where we were, with everything from prison reform to a lot of the environmental issues.

And I remember one time shooting a story and realizing my feet were actually beginning to melt down into the ground because of how close, we were to some old cans of gosh knows what that were shooting Yikes.

Yeah.

Yikes, indeed.

Wow.

Well, the state were in and LPB as a whole would not be what it is today without the leadership of Beth Courtney, who passed away late last month.

Beth was a visionary and the driving force behind Louisiana, the state we're in, and helped shape public broadcasting in our state for decades.

Her impact will live on through the program.

She helped build, the stories we tell and the people she inspired.

Here's a look at our documentary, Beth Courtney Fearless visionary I want you all to know is that we are doing our best to serve the American public.

This week, we'll take you on an alligator hunt in Louisiana's coastal parishes.

As we merge all these technologies, public television's changing.

You ask someone in public broadcasting about Beth Courtney.

They know Beth Courtney.

They know about everything that she's done.

They know about LPB.

They know about the fact that we have a great record.

It's because of that.

She is she is public broadcasting.

She really is.

Beth and in the beginning, I think a guy named Ron Blum, you know, kind of did everything.

But they'd be down there working on their editors and late in the night, you know, putting a show together every week, which was kind of unheard of.

She came up with this name.

What do you think about this one?

Louisiana, the state we're in.

And yes, thumbs up on that one.

Louisiana, the state we're in is a production of WLPB.

what I remember Beth telling me was that, you know, she was she was kind of out there and she had been a history teacher at one point.

And so but when she became a reporter, she found her soul, so to speak, for joining us tonight.

And we'll hope you'll join us again next week on Louisiana, the state we're in, when we'll have more legislative news, controversial issues and profiles of interesting people.

I'm Beth George.

Good evening.

So in the 1970s and 1980s, very few of my friends had mothers who worked full time outside the home.

And those who who did didn't necessarily.

I don't know of anyone whose mother literally knew every single person.

We turned on the news who was delivering the news and was featured on the news.

If she was on a first name basis with every governor, legislator or anchor or journalist when she began coming to the Capitol and covering events and things like that, there were members of the press corps that didn't think she should be credentialed because they felt like, no, no, she's not a real journalist.

You see, she gets her check comes from the state of Louisiana, and therefore she's a state employee and a flac And so she had to that was her first major hurdle to face within that organization.

But she ultimately won everyone over.

And to her, it was never just about doing television either.

It was about the issues and making a difference.

Clay, she was such a force for public media, and in those days it was hard for women to get into the news business.

How did she break through that glass ceiling?

I'll tell you what.

She had such passion for the news.

She had such passion for LPB.

She was a winning formula, let's just say.

And when the the executive director chose to leave, we basically were all behind her.

We were Team Beth, every one of one of us, because we knew she was the leader that could get LPB up into the national spotlight.

It really was kind of a perfect storm, you know, with all the interests and then all of the the just the beginnings of public television and news media and extensive coverage, where a lot of times, you know, the news stories were just a short soundbites and no more than a minute or two long.

That's the main thing, is the fact that basically what we were doing were giving in-depth reporting on what was going on, and we were going to give both sides of it too so that the general public could make their own decision.

So it was more of that education that we were so proud of.

That was my next question.

She was so focused on education.

She was absolutely focused on educating the future of this state.

And when the video department could no longer be funded by the Department of Education, she opened them with open arms.

And we are still in video education today because of that.

She will be missed.

And like we mentioned, Beth helped break barriers for women in journalism, and she believed in the power of public media to inform and educate Louisiana viewers.

And that commitment to informing the public extended to the state's highest offices.

Political coverage has always been a cornerstone of Louisiana, the state we're in, from legislative hearings to in-depth interviews with governors going back to Edwin Edwards administration, you more or less, in your opening remarks, said it's going to be up to you to take the initiative.

In some areas, you still find legislators coming to you and asking you to intervene and help them with this bill.

Help them with that to some extent, but that's decreasing substantially as the legislature becomes more independent.

There have been people who have said that you have had a lot of governmental successes.

You just don't know how to turn them to a political advantage.

Well, that's course up to the news media, and maybe I haven't done a good job in that respect.

You know, I, I like the work of being governor very much.

I like problems, I like challenges, I like to examine them.

I like to come up with solutions, and I like to implement them and to spend a lot of time out talking about it.

And to patting yourself on the back is, frankly, is not consistent with my style.

You have had the reins of state government here in Louisiana for about a week now.

Any surprises?

Yes and no.

For the last four months, as you know, we've been acting governor in a sense.

And that's been very frustrating because things that needed to be done, I couldn't do.

I had to get someone's approval.

Now I can do them.

And we've begun the process.

I'm sure that brings back memories.

I wasn't in Louisiana at that time.

It's incredible.

You've seen different folks and you remember stories, and then you see the video again.

That happens to be 20, 30, 40 or more years old.

I know time just it just goes so fast.

Well, over the past five decades, the state where in has also documented many of Louisiana's most significant moments, many of which are still concerns today everything from political corruption to concerns over industrial emissions and coastal restoration.

The indictment of Governor Edwin Edwards is only the fifth time in our country's history that is seated.

Governor has faced federal charges.

This indictment includes 51 counts involving racketeering, mail fraud and wire fraud.

Tonight, a story from Louisiana.

In this small river road community located in the heart of Saint James Parish.

A controversy is brewing that has caught the attention of the federal government.

It is the proposed site for a controversial $700 million chemical plant, destined to be the second largest of its kind in the world.

The Japanese chemical company Shin Tech has set its sights on this 3700 acres of sugar cane fields to produce polyvinyl chloride, but the company has hit some opposition.

Several residents here worry about the plant's emissions and the threat of an industrial accident.

Several years ago, the legislature set up a $35 million trust fund to help deal with coastal problems.

Since then, local, state and federal officials have been studying and studying and studying the problem of coastal erosion.

All the while, the coast has been disappearing at an alarming rate.

Unless something is done.

And soon, many experts believe the state could be faced with an unprecedented environmental disaster.

Tonight, a look at what some people are calling Louisiana's vanishing coast.

It is a relentless assault, day in, day out, wave after wave pounding away at the Louisiana coast, eroding, damaging, destroying one of the state's most valuable natural resources.

Make no mistake about it, this is war.

War between man and mother Nature and we█re losing.

It's really amazing how those stories so long ago still impact us to this very day across the state of Louisiana.

Other stories will be forever etched in the minds of everyone in our state.

I was here during Hurricane Katrina, and let's take a look back at a special edition we did after the storm.

For the second day of September.

I'm Robyn Ekings and I'm Charlie Whinham.

Thank you for joining us for this special edition of Louisiana, the state we're in.

We're joining you inside our broadcast center in Baton Rouge, which has become somewhat of a communications center for southeast Louisiana.

The subject of our show is, of course, Hurricane Katrina and the devastation she's brought to our state.

This headline in today's New Orleans Times-Picayune screams what our biggest city has been saying to the rest of the nation this week in increasingly desperate tones.

A week ago, at this time, few suspected this disaster of historic proportions was right around the corner.

Tonight, fear and frustration continue to rise all across southeastern portions of the state, and New Orleans is in a state of emergency with the help of WWL TV in New Orleans, who has been broadcasting around the clock from our facility.

We take a look at what's happened and how it will affect all our lives.

The Big Easy became part of Katrina's big target.

Thousands are feared dead after one of the nation's worst natural disasters.

The level five hurricane plowed through southeast Louisiana and parts of Mississippi and Alabama's Gulf Coast.

Such a tragic event.

What was it like covering that hurricane?

It's wild looking at that video that's, you know, so long ago, and then it hits you hard when you see it again.

Sure.

We, as we mentioned at the beginning of the show, with all that tragedy and New Orleans inundated the New Orleans stations, came and basically set up shop here, several of the affiliate stations throughout New Orleans.

So we we were part of a bandage that helped repair a broken mass media system.

And then we also put our shows together.

Actually, I get chills just thinking about just how big of a deal that was.

And our biggest task was doing our level best to get that word out to the rest of the state, the, the US and the and the whole world.

And LPB was recently nominated for an Emmy for Hurricane Katrina special last year.

We heard from Clay earlier.

Let's check in now with current executive producer Linda Midgett and she's joined by one of LPB's longest tenured employees, Sally Budd.

Thank you.

Charlie and Christina.

So I'm here with Sally Bud, who for 38 years has been a very important part of the team of Louisiana, the state We█re In.

So Sally, 38 years.

What are some of the most notable and memorable stories that you've covered over the years?

Oh, there's been so many.

One of the first things that I realized working here is that almost every story, either national or international, has a Louisiana connection.

There's always some connection to someone or someplace or some thing in Louisiana that connects to a national story.

Well, we talked earlier about Hurricane Katrina, which of course was a really important story for New Orleans and the rest of the state.

But there are other hurricanes that you've been a part of here.

Oh, yes, I've been involved.

I think my first one was Andrew.

And what really impressed me with that, the electricity went off in most of Baton Rouge for over a week.

Some people were out for a month.

The entire staff moved into this building.

We have a big concrete block building with our own generator, our own water system.

We could take showers.

We could do everything that you would normally do.

And we kept LPB on the air.

So we just saw some clips of governors who have been in LPB.

And of course everybody has come through this building at some point, you know, notable politicians, etc.

but you've seen them behind the scenes, even a fly on the wall.

So what is stood out to you from seeing these really important people in a very different environment?

Well, they always tell you don't meet your heroes because often they don't live up to your expectations.

But I've discovered that maybe my expectations aren't always met, but you can always learn something from these people.

And I have had such wonderful experiences with most of them.

There's a few I prefer not to meet again, but don't name names.

No, I won't, but right after I started working here, one of the first legends Bank galas, I got to meet Al Hirt.

I played cornet in high school and in college was part of the marching band, and I got to meet Al Hirt.

I have tried on a Super Bowl ring.

I've met just all sorts of wonderful, wonderful people.

I, you know, I can't even begin to say, but some of the best people I met were the people in the street, the people that this was their one story.

A lot of people had just been through a disaster or a bad experience.

Some of them had just had a very good experience, won an award or something.

And those are the people, the ones that just come up to the car when we pull into a city.

I love this part.

When we pull into any city, people come running up to that LPB car.

What are you doing here in our town?

What are you going to shoot?

When is it going to air?

I love it.

We have that too.

Well, thank you for the contributions that you have made to our team over the years.

Christina and Charlie, back to you guys.

Linda and Sally.

Thank you both.

Well, in addition to documenting the state's biggest news stories, we also cover events that put Louisiana in the national and even international spotlight.

And that includes things like the 1983 Special Olympics hosted in Baton Rouge and the World's Fair.

The following year.

We are here at the side of the International Special Olympics on the campus of Louisiana State University.

Special athletes from around the world have come here for competition and camaraderie, and they have found both from the dramatic opening ceremony to the individual stories of personal courage and triumph.

This has been a very special event for Louisiana.

I come here simply to inspire the kids because they look up to us athletes and all actors or whoever, whatever celebrities are here, and they feel, you know, they feel good when we are here and support them and inspire them and give them positive reinforcement and hug them and just be available.

And in less than a month, on May 12th, all of the world is invited to New Orleans for the great celebration, the 1984 Louisiana World Exposition.

$350 million is riding on the fair's outcome.

Officials are expecting more than 12 million visitors.

Tens of thousands of them on opening day alone.

So we're going to do everything possible to ensure that this is a once in a lifetime experience.

And that one's introduction to New Orleans, Louisiana, is an introduction that they█ll want to come back again and again.

And we feel this will definitely usher in a new era of tourism and tourism development throughout the state.

And those were just a few of the big events we've covered over the years.

Over the 50 years, I might add.

We've also traveled the state touching on smaller events that are still very important in their communities.

Yeah, I've been to Grand Isle, which is so beautiful to go on the beaches over there, and then the small town of Logansport to see their Christmas celebrations.

It's been amazing to travel the state.

It is quintessential Louisiana.

It is wonderful to share all those different stories.

The Rain Frog Festival comes to mind.

I love Bunkie.

Who wouldn't love Bunkie?

It's a town that was named after a quick quiz.

A monkey, a little toy monkey by a three year old girl.

But that's another story for another time.

The state we're in also makes it a priority to highlight Louisiana's culture.

Here's a look back at a Terrebonne Parish woman known as Alligator Annie, who was one of the first in the state to offer swamp tours.

Meet Annie Miller, trapper, alligator hunter, commercial pilot, licensed boat captain, former deputy sheriff, mother of two, grandmother to four, and now a swamp tour guide.

See you there, baby.

Oh, well, now you decided to come get a bite.

Well, come on, hurry up before the big ones get it.

Come on baby.

My baby.

Oh, gee, was that good?

Notices the slit in his eyes.

Notice the pupil of his eyes as it gets dark.

And that slit will expand.

So just when it's completely dark, those pupils are almost round and you can see them with the headlight from 4 to 500ft.

Christina, that's so cool to watch that video because now swamp tours, alligator tours are a real staple of Louisiana tourism, and it thrills visitors all around the world and around the US.

Oh, yeah, it's crazy to see.

Well, over the years, we've covered the people and personalities, and there are a lot of them that make Louisiana so unique.

From our artists to musicians and athletes, it's truly the people that make the state special.

I think that's disturbing.

Obviously, it's the the old woman trying to be young and what is she doing?

She's wearing herself in one of these dancing academies, which, you know, are all over the place.

Well, when I was in the third grade, I found out that summer that I had polio and I couldn't walk, and I couldn't walk for about a year.

And during that time, I stayed in bed most of the time, and my mother bought me things to draw and paint.

With paint by number set was one of the things.

So I stayed in bed and just painted and drew all the time that I couldn't walk and found out that I could paint and draw and loved it.

I would have been the laughing stock of my high school class if I'd have told everybody that I played and listened to Cajun music.

And now, in 1981, it seems like amongst the hip crowd, you know, it's a cool thing to do to listen to Cajun music and to play Cajun music.

It's amazing how things get reversed and switched around to see the evolution of Cajun music.

How cool is that?

I'm just loving all these 50 years of history that LPB has been able to capture and share with our audience.

And you've covered a lot of stories.

Any favorites?

A story or two yeah, I actually worked 14 years with LPB and a few stories that come to mind.

One of the most humbling assignments was doing the Louisiana World War II stories, and I got to talk with several World War II veterans, not only just Pearl Harbor survivors, but Bataan Death March survivors.

And even a guy who bunked shared a hut with John F Kennedy because they were PT boat drivers, imagine just having a chance to talk to those people.

And so that was a very intimidating project, as well as one that you had to do your homework if you really wanted to get a good story listening to them.

Poverty point is a fantastic location that, just within the last 6 to 8 years, became a United Nations World Heritage Site.

Yeah, that's a big deal.

Why?

Those are the designations for places like, oh, what?

The Great Wall of China, something called the Pyramids of Giza, you know, big things it█s beautiful over there.

And Poverty Point also is part of that.

So and and then if you want to have some fun, go to a global wildlife center.

And it takes you outside of Louisiana and right into Africa with all these different animals, and you got to at least one time in your life feed a group of giraffes.

I need to do it.

Oh it is.

It's something everyone should enjoy.

And it's all here throughout Louisiana and something we share and love to tell the stories about to our audiences.

People like you and viewers like you.

Thank you.

Well, it's been wonderful to take a look back.

And thank you guys for joining us for the look back at 50 years of Louisiana, the state we're in.

And by the way, Charlie, we just love seeing you around the building.

Had a great time.

It sounds like you miss it.

You've read my mind.

You've read your mind.

I got a I got a question for you.

Do you think I could come back?

I'd love to come back.

I think so that might be above my pay grade.

I'll let you call it.

How about that?

I'm going to come back.

Christina said it was okay.

I'm going to.

I'm going to be back here on the show and join Christina every Friday night to our statewide audiences telling the news and and the stories of Louisiana people right back home to you.

And I'm very excited about doing that.

And we are excited to have you.

Thank you.

Well, thank you for joining us.

As we celebrate 50 years of Louisiana, the state we're in.

We plan on telling you the stories that impact all of us, and showcasing all the unique people and places that make the state we're in what it is today.

And we plan to be around for another 50 years.

Until next time.

That's the state we're in.

Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together, we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Ziegler Foundation and the Ziegler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana, and by Visit Baton Rouge and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

And viewers like you.

Thank you.