Over the course of three public television series, Henry Louis “Skip” Gates Jr. will explore the meaning of race, culture, and identity in America. The Faces of America, which premiered in February 2010, used genealogy and the latest DNA technology in a four-part examination of well-known Americans of all races and the always-surprising stories of their ancestors. In Winter/Spring 2012, the broadcast of the 10-part series Finding Our Roots will have Gates exploring the genealogy of well-known and diverse celebrities using the most up-to-date research and DNA testing to expand on the principle that it is important to know one's ancestry in order to understand one's present. In Winter/Spring 2013, the broadcast of Searching for Our Roots: The History of the African American People will span 300 years over eight hours in a definitive investigation of the Black experience in America. The series will be complemented by an online oral history archive.