Television

Author and long-time observer and student of China Orville Schell. Schell is correspondent for "Red Flag over Tibet," which will air tonight on PBS's Frontline (February 22 at 9 P.M. check local listings). In "Red Flag over Tibet," SSchell takes the viewers to that mysterious and isolated country on the "Roof of the World." He explores the question: Will Tibet survive its 40 years of occupation by China? He explains why the survival of Tibet--its people and its culture--has become an international issue.

Emmy-Award winning documentary filmmaker and producer, Thomas Lennon. His newest documentary examines the interaction between the tabloid press and the mainstream media: "Tabloid Truth: the Michael Jackson Scandal" (which airs on PBS stations February 15th). By watching the story of alleged sexual abuse swell from verifiable news to national spectacle, Lennon questions the state of American journalism, as CNN fights for the same stories once relegated to the National Inquirer.

Television critic David Bianculli reviews the new CBS telemovie "I Spy Returns," which re-pairs stars Bill Cosby and Robert Culp from the old "I Spy" series. Bianculli tells us how the telemovie stacks up against its competition, the regular lineup of NBC sitcoms.

Beverly and Dereck Joubert, wildlife documentary producers. This husband and wife team lives in northern Botswana, seven hours from the nearest village. Working and living out of a four-wheel drive vehicle, they have captured the family relationships of the last free-roaming elephants left in Africa. Their latest wildlife film, "Reflections on Elephants," contains ground-breaking footage of lions attacking an elephant calf. Previously, such attacks were thought to be only mythical. The documentary premieres on PBS this Wednesday at 8:00 PM ET.

Drummer and drum historian Max Weinberg. For over a decade, Weinberg was the drummer for Bruce Springstein's E Street Band. Now he leads the 7-piece band on Late Night With Conan O'Brien on NBC. Weinberg co-authored The Big Beat: Conversations with Rock's Great Drummers (Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1984). Now, he has produced and annotated a three-volume compilation of music performed by his favorite rock 'n roll drummers of the 50's, 60's and 70's. (Max Weinberg Presents: Let There Be Drums, Vols. 1-3. on the Rhino label.

TV critic, David Bianculli, reviews new prime-time cartoon series, "The Critic," created by a team of three writer-producers from "The Simpsons." "The Critic" is about New York film reviewer and single father, Jay Sherman.

The former head of NBC's television programming Pat Weaver (Sylvester L. "Pat" Weaver, Jr.). He began that job in the early days of the medium - in 1949 - and was the creator of two of television's longest running shows, the "Today" show and the "Tonight" show. Weaver started his career in radio, where he worked with comic Fred Allen. And he was advertising manager for the American Tobacco Company, under the eccentric tobacco magnate George Washington Hill. Weaver has a new memoir of his career, "The Best Seat in the House," (Knopf).

T-V critic David Bianculli reviews "Monty" a new sitcom on FOX starring and produced by Henry Winkler.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the premiere of the second life of NBC's cop- show, "Homicide".

Classical Music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new recording of Leonard Bernstein's "On the Town" and the television concert of the same show. (Deutsche Grammophon).