Tuesday, October 1, 4 PM
Get more out of Mountain Lake PBS series and specials with Watch & Wonder Program Highlights. Watch American Experience | LBJ: My Fellow Americans and then dive deeper with media rich educational resources on PBS LearningMedia.
Lyndon Baines Johnson was one of the most astute, effective, and perplexing politicians in modern American history. An “accidental” president but a master legislator, he was determined to “out-Kennedy the Kennedys” by pushing through historic social legislation on a scale that rivaled FDR’s New Deal. LBJ put into motion many of the programs that would continue to shape American life throughout the 1960s and 1970s, a package of reforms known as the “Great Society.” But as his authority was undermined by an increasingly unpopular commitment of U.S. forces to Vietnam, his presidency began to unravel. In 1968 he stunned the nation by announcing he would not seek reelection. A larger-than-life figure in his day, LBJ is appreciated for his vast domestic accomplishments, but his presidency continues to be overshadowed by his failure to end the war in Vietnam.
LBJ and the Great Society
Grades 9-12
Learn about the array of civil rights and social welfare legislation that President Lyndon Johnson championed in pursuit of what he characterized as the “Great Society,” in this video segment adapted from LBJ | AMERICAN EXPERIENCE. Johnson’s success in enacting reforms in the areas of civil rights, voting rights, education, health care, and housing were quickly met by budgetary constraints, including those imposed by increased spending on the Vietnam War, and significant public skepticism that compromised the effectiveness of many of the new programs.
Take advantage of the Mountain Lake PBS broadcast schedule with Watch & Wonder Program Highlights. Great for classroom viewing, distance instruction, and families looking to spend extra quality time together, these programs are suitable for middle and high school aged learners.
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