Talk:Whitney Dow

Start a discussion about improving the Whitney Dow page,

I am Whitney Dow, the subject of this article, and therefore have a conflict of interest. I am requesting that an independent editor review the following updates to the article. I have tried to keep the proposed changes factual and supported by published sources.

1. Update the introductory paragraph

I propose updating the introduction to reflect more recent work. Suggested language:

Whitney Dow (born October 10, 1961) is an American documentary filmmaker, producer, and director. He is best known for Two Towns of Jasper, co-directed with Marco Williams, which received a George Foster Peabody Award and an Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award. His other directing credits include I Sit Where I Want: The Legacy of Brown v. Board of Education, Unfinished Country, When the Drum Is Beating, and The Big Payback, co-directed with Erika Alexander.

I have intentionally not included the existing characterization that my work focuses primarily on race and identity, since my documentary work has covered a broader range of subjects.

2. Add The Big Payback

In 2022, Dow co-directed and produced The Big Payback with Erika Alexander. The documentary follows Robin Rue Simmons and the effort to establish a reparations program for Black residents of Evanston, Illinois. It premiered at the Tribeca Festival and was broadcast nationally on PBS's Independent Lens in January 2023.

PBS/Independent Lens lists Dow and Alexander as directors and producers:

https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/the-big-payback/

3. Add Academy membership

In 2020, Dow was invited to join the Documentary Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The Academy's 2020 new-member announcement lists Whitney Dow in the Documentary branch, citing When the Drum Is Beating and Two Towns of Jasper:

https://www.oscars.org/newmembers2020/pdf/2020_new_members.pdf

4. Add/update filmography

I would also appreciate an editor reviewing and updating the filmography to include more recent and currently omitted credits. Proposed additions include:

• The Big Payback (2022) — Co-director, producer
• After the Bite (2023) — Executive producer
• Ask E. Jean (2025) — Consulting producer

There are also earlier producing and executive-producing credits that appear to be absent from the current article, including Freedom Summer, Banished: How Whites Drove Blacks Out of Town in America, The Undocumented, Toots, and Among the Believers. I would be happy to provide reliable sources for the exact credits if an editor believes these are appropriate for inclusion.

I am also currently directing and producing the documentary ORCA. Because it is still in production, I leave it to independent editors to determine whether there is sufficient independent sourcing for it to be included at this stage.

I would appreciate an independent editor reviewing these requests and making whatever changes are consistent with Wikipedia's sourcing, neutrality, and biographical policies. I am happy to provide additional sources or clarification as needed.

Thank you. Whitney157 (talk) 15:23, 23 August 2026 (UTC)