PBS Western Reserve presents a collection of stories that are singularly focused on the region that we all call home. Explore the people, places, history and events that make Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania so special.
About Our Region — January 2026
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Presented by PBS Western Reserve
The World According to Polka
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Thursday, Jan. 1, at midnight & 12:30 AM
Fridays, Jan 2 & 9, at 10:30 PM
Saturdays, Jan. 3 & 10, at 3:30 AM
Saturday, Jan. 24, at 5:30 PM
Cleveland’s Chardon Polka Band takes you on the road to teach you about the rich history and lively culture surrounding polka. There will be friends, laughter, food and a whole lot of polka performances. From chowing down on a “Sasquatch burger” and making pierogies to rocking out with Akron guitarist Michael Weber, the band’s antics offer an informative tour of Northeast Ohio and beyond.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve and Akron Children’s
More Childhood, Please
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Saturday, Jan. 3, at 1 PM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Sunday, Jan. 25, at 7 PM
Tuesday, Jan. 27, at 10 PM
Created and produced for kids (and parents), MORE CHILDHOOD, PLEASE is a series that blends aspects of reality TV, video challenges and helpful information from experts at Akron Children’s. Watch as kids and families tackle tricky topics like screens and screen time, emotions, the outdoor world and sports.
A PBS Western Reserve Production
City Centric
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Saturdays and Sundays at 6 PM
PBS Western Reserve presents an inspiring series highlighting passionate individuals who reflect the fabric of their cities. Each city’s episode reveals the stories of six trailblazers who define the essence of their community and possess unique roles including business leader, revitalizer, artist, humanitarian, historian, educator and visionary.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve and The Summit FM
Studio C Sessions
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Saturdays at 10:30 PM
Sundays at 2:30 AM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Sundays at 8 PM
Enjoy live performances that capture artists and audiences connecting in the closest of confines. To experience these unique concerts live, you have to be a member of The Summit FM, a public radio station serving Akron, Canton and Youngstown. This series allows you to watch these intimate music moments on PBS Western Reserve.
Great Lakes Now
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sundays at 11 AM
Through a regional magazine-style television program and daily online reports at GreatLakesNow.org, GREAT LAKES NOW covers the environmental, recreational, cultural, and economic issues of the lakes and the communities that depend on them.
A PBS Western Reserve Production
East Liverpool, Ohio: My Town
PBS WESTERN RESERVE (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Monday, Jan. 5, at 3:30 AM
East Liverpool has faced challenges similar of many Rust Belt towns, including job losses and declining population. However, the depressed area’s young people are now returning home with a vision for a new tomorrow. Several alumni, with talents ranging from jazz singing to marketing and architecture, bring an innovative spirit to the challenge of revitalizing their hometown.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve
Forum 360
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
First Monday of every month at 5 PM and 5:30 PM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Mondays at 7:30 PM
Saturdays at 5 PM
This public affairs series provides a local viewpoint on global topics. Subjects covered are both educational and entertaining, and are hosted by a Northeast Ohio community member who assists in determining the show’s content.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve
The Remember Balloons
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Thursday, Jan. 8, at 5 PM
A heartwarming dance-theater production that brings families together through storytelling and movement. Inspired by the award-winning children’s book, the show uses dance, music and multimedia to explore memory, loss and intergenerational connections, making difficult conversations about Alzheimer’s disease accessible for audiences of all ages.
Trailblazing Women in Ohio Politics
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Thursday, Jan. 8, at 5 PM
Sunday, Jan. 11, at 11 PM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Saturday, Jan. 24, at 3 PM
TRAILBLAZING WOMEN IN OHIO POLITICS digs deep into the personal experiences and challenges of women who took the risk to run for office when women’s candidacies were exceedingly rare. The purpose of this project is to bring their lived experiences to life for a broad public audience to inform, inspire and, perhaps, prompt others to run.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve
The Master Craftsman
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Friday, Jan. 9, at 8:30 PM
Saturday, Jan. 10, at 1:30 AM
Thursday, Jan. 15, at 4 PM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Saturday, Jan. 10, at 4 AM
For more than 50 years Richard Grell has been hand-crafting Windsor chairs on his Hudson, Ohio, property, using wood from his farm. His museum-quality chairs are owned by institutions, businesses and individuals across the country, including famous actors, musicians, Fortune 500 CEOs and presidents. This documentary is an intimate look into Grell’s woodworking skills and techniques.
10TH SEASON!
A PBS Western Reserve Production
Around Akron with Blue Green
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sunday, Jan. 11, at 2:30 PM
Monday, Jan. 19, at midnight
Saturday, Jan. 24, at 9:30 PM
Sunday, Jan. 25, at 1:30 AM
Thursday, Jan. 29, at 4 PM
Saturday, Jan. 31, at 1:30 PM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Saturday, Jan. 10, at 4:30 PM
Sunday, Jan. 18, at 7:30 PM
Friday, Jan. 30, at 10:30 PM
This monthly half-hour shines a spotlight on all of the good things that Akron has to offer. Each show consists of four stories, including segments on dining, arts and culture, history, business, and movers and shakers.
See what’s new and exciting in Akron on PBS Western Reserve’s legacy series AROUND AKRON WITH BLUE GREEN, now in its 10th season.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve
Veterans of America — Our Heroes in Uniform: They Served Too
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Monday, Jan. 12, at 9:30 PM
The story of female veterans is as varied as the story of females in all walks of life. This 30-minute local production highlights many of the challenges and successes of area women in uniform. Examples include a young mother who now serves in the Army Reserve, a young couple who are both veterans, a female general and a nurse who is in the reserves.
Engineering Tragedy: The Ashtabula Train Disaster
PBS WESTERN RESERVE (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Tuesday, Jan. 13, at 9 PM
Wednesday, Jan. 14, at 2 AM
The Ashtabula train disaster on Dec. 29, 1876, was the worst train disaster of the 19th century, claiming the lives of 95 people. This documentary explores the events surrounding the Ohio disaster, including the engineering, construction and collapse of the Ashtabula bridge.
Watch ENGINEERING TRAGEDY: THE ASHTABULA TRAIN DISASTER online.
A PBS Western Reserve Production in collaboration with Akron 200
Akron 200: Forgotten History Forum Series
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Thursday, Jan. 15, at 6 PM
AKRON 200: FORGOTTEN HISTORY FORUM SERIES explores lesser-known chapters of Akron's history, from urban renewal and the story of deaf rubber workers to the local history of the African American church and much more. Presented in collaboration with the city’s bicentennial commission, the series is more than expert lectures, it is an invitation to foster dialogue that shines a light on the influential and at times challenging corners of Akron’s 200-year lifespan.
A PBS Western Reserve Production
By Nature’s Design: Exploring Our Native Wildlife, Wetlands: Seasons of Change
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Friday, Jan. 16, at 8:30 PM
Saturday, Jan. 17, at 1:30 AM
Thursday, Jan. 22, at 4 PM
Saturday, Jan. 24, at 5 PM
Monday, Jan. 26, at midnight and 10 PM
Tuesday, Jan. 27, at 3 AM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Tuesday, Jan. 20, at 10:30 PM
Saturday, Jan. 31, at 1:30 PM
Learn how wetlands adapt to changing seasons throughout the year and hear from experts on the topic of climate change and the risks it poses to wetland ecosystems.
Watch BY NATURE’S DESIGN: EXPLORING OUR NATIVE WILDLIFE online.
The Magic of Mazza
PBS WESTERN RESERVE (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sunday, Jan. 18, at 1 PM
Explore the origins of the Mazza Museum and the world's largest and most diverse collection of original picture book art and the artists and illustrators who created it.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve
Training for Freedom
PBS WESTERN RESERVE (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sunday, Jan. 18, at 2 PM
Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 3:30 AM
In 1890, Mississippi had 190,000 registered Black voters. By 1966, that number was reduced to 2,000 due to a complicated voter registration process. This documentary is the transformational story of how idealistic college students and Black activist teachers came together in Oxford, Ohio, to fight as one in the freedom struggle that would define a nation and alter the course of history.
The Lincoln School Story
PBS WESTERN RESERVE (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sunday, Jan. 18, at 2:30 PM
Discover the little-known fight for school desegregation led by a handful of Ohio mothers and their children in 1954.
In the wake of Brown v. Board of Education, school districts nationwide were mandated to integrate. But when African American mothers in Hillsboro, Ohio, tried to enroll their children in the local, historically white schools, the school board refused to comply. Five mothers and their children took the school board to court and eventually their children became the first Black students to attend a high-quality local elementary school.
A PBS Western Reserve Production
Under Fire, Under Siege: Strike Breakers in Kent, Ohio
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Tuesday, Jan. 20, at 10 PM
Wednesday, Jan. 21, at 3 AM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Saturday, Jan. 17, at 3 PM
In 1936, two truckloads of Cleveland strikebreakers crashed through a peaceful picket line in Kent, OH. They fired sawed-off shotguns and tear gas in an attempt to intimidate the workers and break a six-week-old strike at the Black & Decker Co. The strikebreakers not only failed to end the strike but had the tables reversed on them as strikers and sympathizers fired rifles at them for six hours.
Watch UNDER FIRE, UNDER SIEGE: STRIKE BREAKERS IN KENT, OHIO.
Jeffrey’s Journey
PBS WESTERN RESERVE (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sunday, Jan. 25, at 11 PM
Ten days. 461 miles. One disabled cyclist. Jeffrey McElfresh suffers from Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a debilitating and progressive neuropathy. It's rare and there is no cure. But he's still living his dream of being an adventure cyclist. Follow him as he rides along the Ohio River from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati.
Presented by PBS Western Reserve, Ideastream Public Media and the University of Akron’s Media Studies program
Akron Roundtable
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Thursday, Jan. 29, at 6 PM
Since 1976, the Akron Roundtable has brought new ideas to Akron. Now, PBS Western Reserve, Ideastream Public Media and the University of Akron’s Media Studies program are partnering with the Akron Roundtable to bring those ideas to our region at large. The Akron Roundtable’s signature series delivers thought-provoking presentations on a wide range of topics from speakers of global, national and regional importance.
