TV program notes -- week of Oct. 21

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Here are some television program notes for the week of Oct. 21 with their TV Parental Guidelines ratings if available. They have not been reviewed and therefore are not necessarily recommended by the Office for Film & Broadcasting.

Sunday, Oct. 21, 8-10 p.m. EDT (History) "Stalking Jihad." Based on Mark Bowden's Atlantic Monthly article, the program follows Bowden as he travels to the remote jungle islands of the Philippines to investigate a covert CIA mission to hunt down the al-Qaida-linked terrorists who kidnapped Martin and Gracia Burnham, an American missionary couple who were held as hostages of the notoriously brutal Abu Sayyaf group for more than a year in the Philippines.

Sunday, Oct. 21, 9-11 p.m. EDT (PBS) "The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard." Jane Horrocks stars as supermarket-manager-turned-political-phenomenon Ros Pritchard, a working mother of two who captures the votes of a disillusioned electorate and then spectacularly rises to the occasion. The "Masterpiece Theatre" presentation also stars Geraldine James, Stephen Mackintosh and Janet McTeer (TV-PG -- parental guidance suggested).

Sunday, Oct. 21, 10-11 p.m. EDT (EWTN) "Cenacolo: From Darkness to the Light." An inside look at the Comunita Cenacolo in Knock, Ireland, part of an international community dedicated to bringing the love of Jesus to young men and women with drug addictions and other modern ills.

Tuesday, Oct. 23, 9-10 p.m. EDT (PBS) "Showdown With Iran." As Iraq descends into chaos and civil war, "Frontline" examines the rise of its neighbor -- Iran -- as one of America's greatest threats and most puzzling foreign policy challenges. Through interviews with key players on both sides, the program traces the tumultuous history of U.S.-Iran relations since Sept. 11, 2001, from unprecedented early cooperation in Afghanistan to the growing crisis over Iran's nuclear ambitions and Tehran's open threats to drive America out of the Middle East.

Tuesday, Oct. 23, 10-11 p.m. EDT (PBS) "Please Vote for Me." This film follows 8-year-old students in an elementary school in China as they campaign for school monitor. This is the first election for a class leader to be held in a school in China. The three candidates campaign, holding debates and showing their intellectual and artistic skills, until one is voted the winner (TV-PG -- parental guidance suggested).

Wednesday, Oct. 24, 9-10 p.m. EDT (History) "City of Armageddon." Located on a rocky plateau overlooking the Dead Sea, the now-ruined fortress of Masada once had walls 4,600 feet long and 13 feet thick, storehouses, barracks, an armory, a palace and massive cisterns filled with rainwater. Designed to withstand any invader, it became the scene of one of history's most bloody sieges, which ended in mass suicide. A team of historical detectives use evidence from recent excavations, scientific studies and historical documents to piece together clues to what Masada looked like, aided by computer graphics.

Thursday, Oct. 25, 8-9:30 p.m. EDT (PBS) "The Candidates 2008." Judy Woodruff moderates a debate among the major Republican presidential candidates focusing on health care and financial security, live from the Orpheum Theater in Sioux City, Iowa.

Friday, Oct. 26, 9-10 p.m. EDT (Animal Planet) "Saving A Species: Gorillas On The Brink." Actress Natalie Portman and animal icon Jack Hanna join forces to spotlight the plight of the gorillas in an international effort to bring attention to their dire crisis. With fewer than 700 gorillas left in the wild, the documentary shows how the government and people of Rwanda are desperately fighting to keep this revered population from diminishing even further.

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Forbes is director of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

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Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops