'Walking the Bible' Documentary Scores High on Ratings

''Walking the Bible,'' based on the New York Times bestseller by Bruce Feiler, took in high ratings as the documentary series premiered on PBS the first week of January.

By Audrey Barrick, Christian Post Reporter Wednesday, January 18, 2006

"Walking the Bible" took in high ratings as the documentary series premiered on PBS the first week of January.

"When you produce a series, you have expectations about its potential appeal," said TMC Entertainment President Drew Levin, who served as executive producer of the hit mini-series, according to a released statement. "But in all honesty, I couldn't have imagined this kind of ratings success."

"Walking the Bible" aired two shows this month receiving successful ratings in nearly every market it was shown. The miniseries is based on the New York Times bestseller by Bruce Feiler who takes readers and viewers on a 10,000-mile odyssey through the first five books of the Bible.

Beginning from Creation to the land of the Pharaohs and concluding with a glimpse of the Promised Land, the three-part documentary series will have its final hour aired today at 8:00 p.m. (local time).

"Too often, television talks down to its viewers or panders to the lowest common denominator in terms of subject matter," Levin said. "'Walking the Bible' recognizes some oft-overlooked truths about the American public. It recognizes that viewers want material that asks something of them . . . asks them to think, to ponder, to consider. Viewers want to connect to something with meaning, with something higher than themselves."

Feiler, author of six books, has traveled to over sixty countries, on five continents. "Walking the Bible" has been translated into fifteen languages and will be the subject of an upcoming children's book.