About this season
Rock Center with Brian Williams was an American weekly television newsmagazine that was broadcast by NBC and hosted by NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams. It debuted on October 31, 2011, and aired on Mondays until January 30, 2012. It aired on Wednesdays starting February 8, 2012. It was produced in the Rockefeller Center's "Studio 3B", the same space as NBC Nightly News, and formerly that of the Today Show. Named after the location of the NBC News headquarters in the GE Building at 30 Rockefeller Center, the program was the first new NBC News program to launch in primetime since Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric debuted in 1993. Rock Center was designed to be more serious than NBC's existing prime time newsmagazine, Dateline NBC, which had increasingly delved into human interest and true crime stories, and had switched from a multiple-story format into a single story format. On May 10, 2012, NBC announced that Rock Center had been removed from the schedule for the remainder of the May 2012 sweeps period due to low ratings. Three days later, on May 13, 2012, NBC announced that Rock Center would be renewed for a second season during its 2012-13 upfront presentation. The series was also shown on MSNBC.
Episodes (38)
1. October 31, 2011
Aired 31 October 2011 • 42 min
Brian Williams reports on the latest news stories.
2. November 7, 2011
Aired 7 November 2011 • 42 min
3. November 14, 2011
Aired 14 November 2011 • 42 min
Brian Williams previews Rock Center's November 14 broadcast, which will include reports from Bob Costas on the Penn State scandal, Kate Snow on a controversial immigration law in Alabama, and Brian's own visit to the place that creates "Meals Ready-to-Eat." Photographer Annie Leibovitz is Brian's in-studio guest.
4. November 21, 2011
Aired 21 November 2011 • 42 min
5. November 28, 2011
Aired 28 November 2011 • 42 min
6. December 5, 2011
Aired 5 December 2011 • 42 min
7. December 12, 2011
Aired 12 December 2011 • 42 min
8. December 19, 2011
Aired 19 December 2011 • 42 min
9. December 26, 2011
Aired 26 December 2011 • 42 min
10. January 2, 2012
Aired 2 January 2012 • 42 min
11. January 9, 2012
Aired 9 January 2012 • 42 min
12. January 16, 2012
Aired 16 January 2012 • 42 min
13. January 23, 2012
Aired 23 January 2012 • 42 min
14. January 30, 2012
Aired 30 January 2012 • 42 min
15. February 8, 2012
Aired 8 February 2012 • 42 min
16. February 15, 2012
Aired 15 February 2012 • 42 min
17. February 22, 2012
Aired 22 February 2012 • 42 min
18. February 29, 2012
Aired 29 February 2012 • 42 min
19. March 7, 2012
Aired 7 March 2012 • 42 min
20. March 14, 2012
Aired 14 March 2012 • 42 min
21. March 21, 2012
Aired 21 March 2012 • 42 min
Computer hacking crime. "Mad Men" discussion with producer and creator Matthew Weiner. Wrestler Rulon Gardner. Nuisances of smart phones in public.
22. March 28, 2012
Aired 28 March 2012 • 42 min
The slumping leads to growth in pawn shops. Trayvon Martin. Veterans and military spouses find employment. Finding dirt on political opponents.
23. April 4, 2012
Aired 4 April 2012 • 42 min
Effectiveness of police photo line-ups. Chinese dancer Jin Xing. LEGO builders.
24. April 11, 2012
Aired 11 April 2012 • 42 min
Gun safety. Build the new World Trade Center. Drew Eckmann, and music performances.
25. April 18, 2012
Aired 18 April 2012 • 42 min
Madonna and her new CD. Elections in France. World's fastest man Usain Bolt.
26. April 25, 2012
Aired 25 April 2012 • 42 min
Costco. Patients who can't leave the hospital because they can't go home. Chain restaurant that helps the poor. The play "The Book of Mormon."
27. May 2, 2012
Aired 2 May 2012 • 42 min
Describing the decision making and operation to kill Osama bin Laden.
28. May 9, 2012
Aired 9 May 2012 • 42 min
Head injuries in sports The horse Neville Bardos. The state of rock and roll in America in 1961.
29. June 7, 2012
Aired 7 June 2012 • 42 min
Internet entrepreneurs Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker. Adele; Athlete Oscar Pistorius. Head injury in soccer
30. June 14, 2012
Aired 14 June 2012 • 42 min
Personal story of a genetic disease that results in bone-marrow transplants. Growing real estate market in South Florida. Candice Bergen.
31. June 21, 2012
Aired 21 June 2012 • 42 min
Jerry Sandusky accused of child molestation at Penn State. Madonna Badger speaks about the death of five family-members in a 2011 fire. West Wing writer Aaron Sorkin. Life of Garrett Jackson, assistant to Mitt Romney's.
32. June 28, 2012
Aired 28 June 2012 • 42 min
How hospitals collect past-due bills. The impact of the Arab Spring on archaeologists in Egypt. Joe and Jane Clementi - parents of a student who committed suicide while attending Rutgers University.
33. July 5, 2012
Aired 5 July 2012 • 42 min
Babies who are addicted to painkillers because of their mothers dependence. High-risk youth facility. Building a new radio telescope. Noise at tennis matches. What does it take to produce New York City's July 4th fireworks.
34. July 12, 2012
Aired 12 July 2012 • 42 min
Interviews with former members of the Church of Scientology. Syrian rebels. Liability of cruise companies for deadly accidents.
35. July 19, 2012
Aired 19 July 2012 • 42 min
Interviews with Mitt Romney's children. Gymnast Gabby Douglas's story. College students increasing debt load. Water skiing in Wisconsin.
36. July 26, 2012
Aired 26 July 2012 • 42 min
Large medical bills haunt victims of crimes. The London Olympics opening ceremony discussed with its creator -- Danny Boyle. Olympic swimmer Cullen Jones. John Williams discusses the "Olympic Fanfare.". A history of former Olympic great Billy Fiske who was killed in 1940.
37. August 16, 2012
Aired 16 August 2012 • 42 min
What do athletes do after the Olympics? Drug-rehabilitation program run by the Church of Scientology. Ann Romney. Children writing to their parents while at summer camp.
38. August 23, 2012
Aired 23 August 2012 • 42 min
Mormonism. Its history and rituals; its business successes; and the satirical Broadway hit "The Book of Mormon."