![\"Joan](\"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/images\/20-0820s2p-joan-lunden-696x522.jpg\")
PHOTO CAPTION: Joan Lunden. Credit: Daphne Youree.<\/em><\/p>\n
\u201cAs one of America\u2019s most recognized and trusted personalities, Joan exemplifies the mission of \u2018Second Opinion\u2019 in providing highly credible health information to our audience,\u201d said WXXI President Norm Silverstein.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Joan as the new host, and the heightened interest in healthcare, \u2018Second Opinion with Joan Lunden\u2019 is the right show at the right time for public television stations across the country,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
For nearly two decades, Lunden greeted viewers each morning on \u201cGood Morning America,\u201d bringing insight to the day\u2019s top stories. As the longest-running female host ever on early morning television, Lunden reported from 26 countries, covered five presidents, five Olympics, and kept Americans up to date on how to care for their homes, their families, and their health.<\/p>\n
As host of \u201cSecond Opinion with Joan Lunden,\u201d she will draw from her years of experience as she guides medical professionals and lay people in honest, in-depth discussions about life-changing medical decisions. Season 17 with 10 episodes is slated to release in February 2021, airing in 90% of the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is my absolute pleasure to be joining the team at \u2018Second Opinion\u2019 which has been enlightening viewers on health issues for sixteen years,\u201d said Lunden. \u201cI\u2019d always imagined I\u2019d follow in my father\u2019s footsteps, a cancer surgeon who was dedicated to his patients\u2019 wellbeing. While I did not become a doctor, as a broadcaster and health advocate, I have had a lifetime opportunity to educate and empower others to better control their health and longevity. I look forward to becoming a part of the PBS family!\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the most visible women in America, Lunden has graced the covers of more than 60 magazines and books. Her newest book, \u201cWhy Did I Come into This Room: A Candid Conversation About Aging,\u201d released in March, is a New York Times Best Seller. Recently, Lunden has been named the ambassador to the Poynter Institute\u2019s MediaWise for Seniors program which aims to educate American\u2019s over 50 on media literacy. Lunden is also the host of the Washington Post Podcast series, \u201cCaring for Tomorrow,\u201d premiering in September.<\/p>\n
Lunden has served as national spokesperson for various organizations such as The American Heart Association, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, The American Lung Association, The American Red Cross, The American Academy of Pediatrics, and The Colon Cancer Alliance.<\/p>\n
\u201cSecond Opinion\u201d is a national multimedia health initiative that reaches an engaged audience through television, web, social media, and community and national outreach. Launched in 2004, its goal is to promote good health, improve doctor\/patient communication and empower viewers to take charge of their own healthcare, and in turn, help them navigate the medical system for better health outcomes.<\/p>\n
The series hosts a\u00a0comprehensive web site, https:\/\/www.secondopinion-tv.org\/<\/a> and a robust social media following.<\/p>\n \u201cSecond Opinion\u201d is made possible with support from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA), which has provided production funding for the health care series for more than 15 years. A national federation of 36 independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies, BCBSA is dedicated to finding innovative ways of ensuring that Americans have the healthcare information and resources they need \u2013 and \u201cSecond Opinion\u201d\u00a0serves as part of that commitment.<\/p>\n \u201cSecond Opinion\u2019s\u201d\u00a0executive producer is Fiona Willis and the series is distributed by American Public Television (APT).<\/p>\n THE PRODUCERS<\/strong><\/p>\n WXXI Public Media is an award-winning broadcast family of services dedicated to meeting the lifelong educational needs of its viewers. WXXI operates four digital TV channels, and an array of radio services which include an NPR station, a full-time classical music station, a Triple-A music station, and a radio-reading service for the visually impaired. WXXI\u2019s national productions include documentaries that explore arts, culture and history such as \u201cRestoring a Masterpiece: The Renovation of the Eastman Theatre,\u201d \u201cDialogue in Metal,\u201d and \u201cWendell Castle: A Portrait.\u201d<\/p>\n The University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) \u2013 One of the nation\u2019s leading academic medical centers, the University of Rochester Medical Center forms the centerpiece of the University of Rochester\u2019s health research, teaching and patient care missions. Over the last five years, URMC has garnered more than $1.3 billion in biomedical research, landing the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in the top one-quarter of U.S. medical centers in federal research funding. As upstate New York\u2019s premier health care delivery network, patients benefit from the Medical Center\u2019s robust teaching and biomedical research programs.<\/p>\n The University\u2019s health care delivery network is anchored by Strong Memorial Hospital, an 886-bed, University-owned teaching hospital designated by the New York State Department of Health as a Level One Regional Trauma and Burn Center and home to Western New York\u2019s only cardiac transplant program. With more than 26,000 part- and full-time employees, the Medical Center is the largest single component of the Rochester region\u2019s leading employer.<\/p>\n THE DISTRIBUTOR<\/strong><\/p>\n American Public Television (APT) is the leading syndicator of high-quality, top-rated programming to the nation\u2019s public television stations. Founded in 1961, APT distributes 250 new program titles per year and more than one-third of the top 100 highest-rated public television titles in the U.S. APT\u2019s diverse catalog includes prominent documentaries, performance, dramas, how-to programs, classic movies, children\u2019s series and news and current affairs programs. \u201cDoc Martin,\u201d \u201cMidsomer Murders,\u201d \u201cAmerica\u2019s Test Kitchen From Cook\u2019s Illustrated,\u201d \u201cAfroPoP,\u201d \u201cRick Steves\u2019 Europe,\u201d \u201cPacific Heartbeat,\u201d \u201cChristopher Kimball\u2019s Milk Street Television,\u201d \u201cFront and Center,\u201d \u201cLidia\u2019s Kitchen,\u201d \u201cKevin Belton\u2019s New Orleans Kitchen,\u201d \u201cSimply Ming,\u201d \u201cThe Best of the Joy of Painting with Bob Ross,\u201d \u201cJames Patterson\u2019s Kid Stew\u201d and \u201cNHK Newsline\u201d are a sampling of APT\u2019s programs, considered some of the most popular on public television.<\/p>\n APT also licenses programs internationally through its APT Worldwide service and distributes Create\u00aeTV \u2014 featuring the best of public television’s lifestyle programming \u2014 and WORLD™, public television\u2019s premier news, science and documentary channel. To find out more about APT\u2019s programs and services, visit https:\/\/aptonline.org\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n
![https:\/\/www.Send2Press.com\/300dpi\/20-0820s2p-joan-lunden-300dpi.jpg<\/a>\n*Caption: Joan Lunden. Credit: Daphne Youree.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ROCHESTER, N.Y., Aug. 20, 2020 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Award-winning journalist, bestselling author, and women’s health & wellness advocate, Joan Lunden, has been named host of “Second Opinion,” public television’s Emmy-nominated national healthcare series.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8313,"featured_media":62576,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[82,12804,15,1,37,134,8,559,14043,956],"tags":[14045,14046,14044,14047],"class_list":["post-62586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-television-news","category-ap","category-broadcasting-news","category-business-news","category-entertainment-news","category-general-editorial-news","category-new-york-news","category-products-news","category-rochester-business","category-womens-interest","tag-american-public-television","tag-apt-worldwide","tag-public-television","tag-university-of-rochester-medical-center","has-post-title","has-post-date","no-post-category","no-post-tag","no-post-comment","has-post-author"],"acf":[],"views":4493,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8313"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62586"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62586\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}](\"https:\/\/www.Send2Press.com\/300dpi\/20-0820s2p-joan-lunden-300dpi.jpg\"){kind=link}