The Supreme Court may have refused to let C-SPAN cameras into the court, but that isn't stopping the cable industry-backed public affairs channel from delving into key cases of the past.
As the Supreme Court prepares to fire off some new missives in October—the 2015 session begins next month—C-SPAN will debut a 12-part series, produced with the National Constitution Center, profiling landmark High Court cases.
Each 90-minute program will air Monday nights at 9 p.m. on C-SPAN and C-SPAN3 starting Oct. 5 (the day oral arguments begin in the new High Court session). They will also air on C-SPAN Radio.
The series will be hosted by C-SPAN president Susan Swain and executive produced by Peabody winner Mark Farkas, who also produced C-SPAN's Supreme Court: Home to America’s Highest Court documentary.
The first installment will feature Marbury v. Madison, which upheld the judicial review process by finding that courts could invalidate actions by other branches of government if they were unconstitutional. The series ends with a look at the Roe V. Wade abortion decision in 1973.
“The cases chosen represent some of the tipping points in the Court’s history," said Swain in announcing the series. "Taken together, they represent our evolving understanding of rights in America.”
Other cases in the lineup include Brown v. Board of Education (invalidating school segregation) and Miranda v. Arizona (establishing that police must read suspects their rights—to an attorney and not to incriminate themselves—before taking them into custody).
