Tegna, Debmar-Mercury’s ‘T.D. Jakes’ Debuts

Tegna Media stations and syndicator Debmar-Mercury today launched the one-hour summer talk show T.D. Jakes. Beginning today and running for four weeks, T.D. Jakes will focus on socially relevant and entertaining topics based on the headlines.

Jakes, a Dallas pastor, entrepreneur and businessman, whose reach extends far beyond the pulpit of his 30,000-member church and humanitarian organization, The Potter’s House, “will tackle race in America  in week one” the companies said. He will feature the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Sandra Bland, Michael Brown and Tamir Rice all on one stage for the first time.

T.D. Jakes, airing through Sept. 11 on Tegna’s WFAA Dallas and WKYC Cleveland at 3-4 p.m. and on WXIA Atlanta and KARE Minneapolis at 2-3 p.m., will also examine the personal stories behind other major headlines: public shaming on social media, the indomitable spirits of victims of tragedies and unjust court sentences. Additionally, Jakes will solicit the views of his multi-platform “village.”

The first week’s lineup includes:

• Monday, Aug. 17: “Public Shaming” looks at the phenomenon in which parents discipline their children by videotaping their reprimands and then posting them online for the world to see. In one notable case, Jakes will ask a teen how she felt when her mother let the world know when she found out about the double life she was leading on her Facebook page. Jakes asks if this is tough love or abuse, with guests and audience members weighing in with their opinions.

• Tuesday, Aug. 18: “Unbroken” highlights guests whose bodies and minds have been broken but whose indomitable spirits remain intact, including a beautiful woman whose boyfriend threw industrial-strength sulfuric acid in her face. After 13 surgeries, and with more to come, she is determined to live a full life and to be an inspiration to her children and to other women in domestic violence situations. The episode will also include the inspiring stories of a family that emerged from the loss of a child on 9/11 and a filmmaker who survived an avalanche.

• Wednesday, Aug. 19: In “Good People, Bad Choices,” Jakes meets and counsels the parents of Zach Anderson, 19, who received a harsh sentence for having consensual sex with a 14-year-old girl. Anderson and the girl, who claimed to be 17, met on an online dating site. A judge is considering whether to reduce the sentence.

• Thursday, Aug. 20: ”The Mothers Speak: Race in America” delves into a topic gripping America. Jakes explores both sides of the issue and hears Sandra Bland’s last voicemail message left for her sister. In front of the mothers who have recently lost their children to police shootings or, in the case of Trayvon Martin, a neighborhood watch captain, Jakes makes an impassioned plea for the end of race-motivated violence and speaks about why he went to Ferguson.

• Friday, Aug. 21: “The Village Speaks: Ask the Bishop” offers a town hall-format utilizing Jakes own TV, radio, social and digital media platforms, as well as Tegna’s large social media footprint, to their solicit opinions. His millions of followers, as well as new viewers, will help generate and inspire content and connect to the show in a deeper, more meaningful way.

The show is executive produced by 44 Blue Production’s Emmy-winning President and Co-Founder Stephanie Noonan Drachkovitch; Jakes; Derrick Williams (EVP, TD Jakes Entertainment); and Emmy Award-winning producer Adriane Hopper Williams (co-owner, EnLight Productions). Gail Steinberg and Jack Mori are showrunners.