National and Local Programming

Thirteen/WNET Programming division accepts the following as submissions: treatments; full-length proposals; trailers/works in progress on DVD; and completed programs for evaluation. Please be aware that we will not meet with individuals on a project until material has been reviewed. If you wish, you may send us a letter of inquiry to see if there is possible interest before sending in full-length materials.

Please indicate in your cover letter if you are submitting a program for air on Thirteen’s local schedule or if you are interested in Thirteen presenting your program for national (PBS) distribution.

For more information on submitting completed programs to air on our local schedule, please read the section below concerning our Scheduling and Acquisitions Department.

All submitted materials will be reviewed with a time frame of four to six weeks.

We do acknowledge receipt of submissions by email. Be sure to provide an email address. Once a decision has been reached, you will be contacted directly. All original materials are returned if a project has been turned down. We do not keep any materials on file.

The Scheduling and Acquisitions Department

The Scheduling and Acquisitions Department identifies, screens, and evaluates completed programs from a broad variety of sources for possible inclusion in the local (Thirteen/WNET) broadcast schedule, including REEL NEW YORK and Reel 13. Due to an ever-increasing number of new programs on the one hand, and drastically reduced discretionary air time on the other, most program submissions cannot be entertained.

Submission policy:

We are interested in completed, fully funded programs only (no proposals, or shows that require additional funding to complete);

Send (via regular mail) a short, written program description that must include its length; do not send tape;

If we are interested, we will contact you for further information, or to request a VHS/DVD screener;

Programs acquired for broadcast on Thirteen/WNET are for local air only. They are not distributed nationally via PBS, or offered by us to other distributors or public television stations.

We cannot be responsible for unsolicited tapes, which cannot be returned.

Submit completed programs to:
Scheduling and Acquisitions Department
Thirteen/WNET
450 West 33rd Street
New York, NY 10001

Submit proposals to:
Programming Department
Thirteen/WNET
450 West 33rd Street
New York, NY 10001

New York: 212-560-1313
New Jersey: 973-643-3315
Fax: 212-560-1314

Please contact us at ProposalSubmissions@thirteen.org with questions about our program submission policy.