Special to the NNPA from the Afro-American Newspaper
TV One’ acclaimed documentary series “Find Our Missing” will return in January with new episodes spotlighting the Black community’s lost and missing individuals, the Silver Spring, Md.-based network said.
Winner of the 2011 National Association of Black Journalists’ Best Practices Award, the series aims to put names and faces to people of color who have disappeared without a trace.
Among those profiled in the series initial 10 episodes were two-year-old Teekah Lewis, who was abducted from a bowling alley in Tacoma, Wash., where she and her family had gathered for a fun-filled night, and Morgan Johnson, 27, an epileptic youth ministry leader from Indianapolis, who went missing on a trip to Washington, D.C., for his grandfather’s funeral. Also profiled was Unique Harris, a single mother of two boys, who disappeared from her Southeast D.C. apartment while her children and niece lay sleeping a few feet away.
In each episode, host S. Epatha Merkerson, an Emmy and Golden Globe award winner, takes viewers through the story of a missing person or persons, beginning with the circumstances surrounding their disappearance, the frantic search by loved ones and the investigation by law enforcement.
The public response to the show has been overwhelming, TV One officials said.
“TV One saw unprecedented response to this series, which resonated strongly with audiences and the media in terms of how the issue of missing Black Americans has been traditionally addressed,” Toni Judkins, executive vice president of programming and production for the network, said in a statement.
As in the first season, the producers will lean upon the expertise of the Black and Missing Foundation, Inc. in raising attention about the plight of the missing. TV One’s website, tvone.tv will post the group’s alerts and latest updates about recent missing person cases, as well as other content supplied by the organization including tips on how to prevent abductions. The foundation will in turn help to promote the show through their own Web site and social media platforms.
“We are pleased to partner once again with the Black and Missing Foundation to bring these compelling stories to our viewers and hopefully bring some closure to those struggling with missing persons in their lives and communities,” Judkins said.
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