Discover Inspiring Stories

Explore the roots of country music in PA with untold regional stories of the state’s role in the creation of a uniquely American form. Plus, explore how the genre is thriving and inspiring a new generation of musicians and fans.

The Civic Season Pavilion inside the Smithsonian National Museum of American History features a 28-foot mural inviting visitors to add their wish for America’s future, as we approach the U.S. 250th birthday. The letters will be collected into a time capsule and stored in the Smithsonian archives to be opened in 2075. Education resources available at https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/daily-news-lessons/2025/07/the-smithsonian-is-creating-a-time-capsule-of-hopes-and-wishes

President Donald Trump went to Iowa on Thursday to start the countdown to the nation’s 250th Independence Day next year. To mark the anniversary, the nonpartisan Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress is looking at 250 years of U.S. innovation. John Yang speaks with Glenn Nye, the center’s president and CEO, about the project. Education resources available at https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/daily-news-lessons/2025/07/what-the-us-has-accomplished-in-250-yea

NWPB traveled across Washington state to ask everyday people what the American Revolution—and America today—mean to them. Released to accompany the new documentary series, The American Revolution, this short documentary invites viewers interested in history, politics, and community to explore how “We the People” define America—its food, its freedoms, its contradictions, and its promise.

Joe Minter is the world-renowned Alabama sculptor of the African Village in America. The project is a half-acre art gallery constructed using found objects, reclaimed metal and store-bought materials. Thousands travel to Birmingham to see this 400-year historical record of Black people in America.

Quilt making has a long history in Alabama, and there are no finer examples of this art form than the motifs and craftsmanship of the quilts of Gee’s Bend.

Exploring Civic Engagement Among Students The Young Vote follows a diverse group of students and activists during the 2020 election. It aims to understand young people's perceptions of voting and civic engagement. This documentary sheds light on how the younger generation views their role in democracy. The Importance of Voting Voting is a fundamental right. It allows individuals to express their opinions and influence government decisions. For many young people, this right i

Hidden secrets launch a son’s life-long quest to discover a father he never knew. Revealed: a WWII pilot’s journey from a passionate romance to a heroic doomed air battle; imprisonment in a famous POW camp; a death march across Germany, and unexpected tragedy. The story’s intimate personal details of war speak to the archetypal trauma faced by veteran families of all eras. Martin Sheen narrates.

The railroad station once was in institution an American life, in small towns and big cities alike. This human-interest tale is interwoven with history as the program explores how people interacted with the stations in their towns through multiple generations.

The Route to Emancipation by Black History Bike Ride follows three friends as they embark on a 350-mile cycling route from the Texas Capitol in Austin to the site where Juneteenth began in 1865. The journey takes viewers back through centuries of Black history in Texas.

Burying the Hatchet: The Tom Quick Story is the fascinating account of how Lenni Lenape tribes had been dislocated from their Milford, Pennsylvania, homeland in the late 18th century and how this largely white community and disenfranchised tribal leaders worked together to reconcile the past and forge a shared path forward based on trust, friendship, and an inspiring and healing vision of the future.

At a critical juncture in our nation’s history, Public Defender , an award-winning documentary film, examines the fault lines of American democracy through the lens of Heather Shaner, a seasoned and fiercely compassionate public defender in Washington, DC.

Told exclusively through the words of the project’s visionaries, leaders, artisans and champions who made “the impossible plausible”, Remember Us is the remarkable story of America's new national World War I Memorial--an exceptional vision brought to life by a diverse coalition of Americans who overcame all odds to deliver a stunning achievement a full century after the War That Changed the World.

Triumphs and tragedies of Thomas Paine’s life unfold in To Begin the World Over Again , a one-man play filmed live in Hollywood. Paine, provocative writer and flawed politician, ignited revolutions yet died ignored. His radical ideas on democracy, equality, and morality still challenge us: “We have it in our power to begin the world over again.”

African American pioneer, Clara Brown's true-life story is told through the lens of an American opera, "Gabriel's Daughter." Clara became a successful entrepreneur, helped populate the African American Colorado community while searching for her only remaining daughter who was sold away from her at auction. Through Opera highlighted performances we discover Clara's struggles and triumphs.

The majestic trumpeter swan, North America’s largest waterfowl, was once hunted to the brink of extinction. Thanks to the remarkable...

Reporting from the front lines, This American Land brings you compelling stories on critical issues impacting America's natural...

The Humble Oyster examines the fragility of Northwest Florida’s threatened coastal ecology and efforts to bring back the health of local...

New Jersey, the Garden State, is known for its produce, but not for the enslaved people who tilled the soil. In this two-part...

It’s been more than 400 years since the first Thanksgiving. And there is a lot we are learning about that time. Just prior to the...