On TV: "Civil Warriors" - Tracing the Civil War through descendants

Once again my constant channel flipping has introduced me to a great show. Yesterday I came across "Civil Warriors" on the National Geographic Channel. It re-creates the Civil War through the words of those that lived it and follows their descendants as they see what the war was like through their ancestors eyes. Not only is it fascinating to hear the first-hand accounts of the war, but the producers have turned historical photographs in to "video" of the time period. I very much enjoyed the episode I watched. It is not so much a "genealogy" show, but more a historical look at the war through first-hand accounts. Sadly, there will only be three episodes. For more information on the show, albeit not much more, check out the National Geographic Channel website.

On TV: Searching For with Pam Slaton

I am a constant remote "flipper." I don't watch much television, but when I do you can bet that the channel changes a lot, unless, of course, I am watching my beloved DVR. Anyway, I was flipping channels a few days ago and came across a show on Oprah's new network: OWN. The show is called "Searching For" and features investigative genealogist Pam Slaton. The focus of the show is not the dead, as we usually like to focus on, but rather the search for living relatives that the clients have either lost contact with or never met. Clients bring Pam stories of lost loved ones and she works to find and reunite them. The particular episode I caught featured a mother that was forced to give up her child for adoption at birth and a man that had lost contact with his father.
This show is clearly produced to increase Kleenex sales. While Pam Slaton is billed as a professional genealogist, the show has little to do with genealogy and investigations and more to do with the clients' feelings and fears. In fact, there is no discussion of how Pam finds individuals or what tools she uses. She provides a research tip or two during the show, but the ultimate point is to convey feelings and make the viewer cry, which I did.

The show airs Mondays on the OWN at 8 p.m. (CST). For more information check out the Searching For website.