Returning: Dateline

Australia’s longest-running international current affairs show, Dateline returns 8:30pm Wednesday February 6 to SBS.

George Negus again fronts the show, now in its 24th year.

In the opening episode the series looks at the US Election. Mark Davis goes inside both Democratic and Republican camps, but particularly the Republicans.

The show turns a modest budget into a positive by having its single-crew video journalists access areas that are otherwise prohibitive to bigger news crews. They travel alone, are responsible for reporting and filming their own stories and carry small, lightweight mini-DV cameras and minimal sound and lighting equipment.

Press Release:

It’s the race the whole word is watching and this year, it’s more fascinating than most.

Could Americans see a woman in the White House for the first time? Or an African-American President? How about a former prisoner of war, or perhaps 9/11’s hero of the people?

On Dateline’s first episode for 2008, award-winning video journalist Mark Davis goes inside both Democratic and Republican camps, but particularly the Republicans. Australians have heard a lot about Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, but what about John McCain or Rudy Giuliani? What do they stand for and what type of President would they be?

For the first time since 1952, neither an incumbent president nor vice president is up for nomination. What does that say about the mood of American voters, or the state of American politics?

Celebrating its 24th birthday in 2008, Dateline is Australia’s longest-running international current affairs program.

Fronted by George Negus, one of the country’s most respected journalists, the program boasts a team of multi award-winning video journalists (VJs) who scour the globe for the stories and interviews destined to influence how Australians see the world and their place in it.

The VJs travel alone, responsible for reporting and filming their own stories. They carry small, lightweight mini-DV cameras and minimal sound and lighting equipment. As a result, they gain access to people and places that conventional camera crews can not.

The VJs are unscripted, adventurous and refuse to follow the pack. The result is a current affairs program that’s very revealing in nature, offering stories that are of global importance yet filmed in an up-close-and-personal way, often capturing the talent off-guard.

Last year Dateline was rewarded with two Walkley awards so this year, tune in to see the very best in journalistic excellence that Australia has to offer.