NASHVILLE, Tenn. – January 12, 2009 – The Documentary Channel® (DOC) will celebrate Black History Month every Wednesday in February by telecasting in primetime rarely seen documentaries related to African American history. In addition to its regular network telecasts during Black History Month, DOC will make the films available in their entirety through live streaming on the network’s YouTube™ Channel (www.youtube.com/documentarychannel), providing unprecedented access to network programming through multiple platforms for the first time in DOC’s three-year history.

Telecast on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT, DOC will begin its tribute by presenting the 1968 Oscar® nominated “A Time For Burning” on Feb. 4, followed respectively by “No Short Climb: Race Workers & America’s Defense Technology” on Feb. 11, “Have You Seen Drum Recently” on Feb. 18, and “New York Noir: The History of Black New York” on Feb. 25.

“We are honored to telecast special programming in honor of Black History Month by premiering these thought-provoking documentaries to both television and online audiences for the first time,” says Tom Neff, CEO and founder of The Documentary Channel, launched in January 2006. “We have ambitious plans in 2009 to offer unprecedented documentary content through our new broadband capabilities, and February is a great opportunity for DOC to help viewers and online visitors become more familiar with our network’s new channel on YouTube.com.”

DOC’s primary distribution to 21 million homes nationwide is via DISH Network (Channel 197) and several broadcast stations in major markets, including NYC TV (Channel 25) throughout the greater New York metropolitan area. The Nashville-based network now provides consumers with bonus online video content at www.youtube.com/documentarychannel, in addition to its primary Web site located at www.documentarychannel.com.

The rare telecast of “A Time For Burning” leads off DOC’s Black History Month programming on Wednesday, Feb. 4, marking only the second time in more than 40 years the film has been presented to a television audience since first appearing on public television. “A Time for Burning” was directed and produced by New Jersey-based filmmaker William C. Jersey and nominated for an Academy Award® for the Best Documentary Feature in 1968. Shot with no script or narration, the film commissioned by the Lutheran Church chronicles the attempts of an Omaha, Nebraska minister to persuade his all-Caucasian congregation at the Augustana Lutheran Church to reach out to African-American Lutherans in the city’s north side of town. In 2005, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.

In addition to the film, DOC’s telecast and online presentation of “A Time For Burning” will feature an all-new original “DOC Talk” special, including the network’s own exclusive interviews with filmmaker Jersey and a key figure in the controversial film, former barber Ernie Chambers, who later became the longest standing state senator in Nebraska political history.

On Feb. 11, “No Short Climb: Race Workers & America’s Defense Technology” brings to the forefront the contributions of African-American scientists and technicians who helped shape America’s defense efforts in World War II. Just after the America’s Great Depression, young college educated African-Americans found themselves unemployed and unemployable because of racial barriers. As the U.S. geared up for war in Europe, efforts were made to aggressively recruit and place African-Americans in the military and in civilian service corps. Despite efforts that hindered acceptance, promotion, and recognition of their accomplishments, African-Americans made major contributions to the technological success of “state-of-the-art” defense weaponry during the WWII era. Combining personal memoir with archival footage, still photography, and graphics, filmmaker Robert Johnson, Jr. presents a first-hand account of this previously unknown story.

DOC’s celebration of Black History Month continues Feb. 18 with “Have You Seen Drum Recently,” directed by Jurgen Schadeberg and executive produced by James R.A. Bailey, which is regarded as one of the most important films to emerge from apartheid South Africa. Filmed by the father of South African photography and former photographer and artistic director of Drum Magazine, this is the story of a black magazine in a white world. The 1998 film explores the golden era of the South African magazine during the 1950s and its contribution to the cultural and political life of the country, before the system of apartheid had been fully implemented.

On Feb. 25, “New York Noir: The History of Black New York” examines the history of New York’s African-Americans, who have had a profound impact on the history of New York City, from the early 1600s through to today. Produced by MyMar Entertainment, rare historical footage is featured in the film that includes segments on civil rights, politics, business, science and discovery, military heroes, sports and entertainment, the Harlem renaissance and much more. Above all else, this film honors and pays tribute to the many great contributions African Americans have made to New York, the nation, and the world.

About The Documentary Channel®: The Documentary Channel (DOC) is the USA’s first 24-hour television network exclusively devoted to documentary films and the independent documentary filmmaker, providing viewers with round-the-clock opportunities to see fascinating, eclectic and award-winning documentary films of all lengths and genres. Headquartered in Nashville, Tenn., with offices in New York and Los Angeles, DOC was founded by Oscar®-nominated and Emmy®-winning documentary filmmaker Tom Neff (CEO) in January 2006. DOC now reaches more than 21 million homes nationwide via DISH Network (Channel 197) and several broadcast stations in major television markets, including NYC TV (Channel 25) throughout the greater New York metropolitan area. The network also provides content to online distribution outlets through YouTube (www.youtube.com/documentarychannel). For more information on DOC, visit www.documentarychannel.com.