Finally, the film takes the viewer to the Philadelphia suburb of Folcroft, the scene of ugly rioting this summer when a Negro family moved in. Some of Folcrofts whites frankly admit they ran away from the Negro in Philadelphia and have no intention of welcoming him to their new suburban neighborhood. Opposition, they say, is based on fear of everything from property devaluation to intermarriage. At a meeting of the Folcroft Action Committees block captains, cameras record their open discrimination to keep the people of the community informed and freeze out the Negro family. The block captains completely frank and forthright comments provide a unique film document, as does a visit with the Negro family against whom the whites have organized.
The host and producer of "Confronted" is George Page, who earlier that year produced The Southern Liberal for NETs The White South: Two Views. Now director of special projects for public affairs at WGBH-TV, Boston, Mr. Page was previously news editor of WSB-TV the NBC affiliate in Atlanta, Georgia, where he also produced documentaries. One of his WSB-TV documentaries Blockbusting: Atlanta Style recently won for him the annual Radio-Television News Directors Association award for the best edited documentary by a local station. Mr. Page is a native of Georgia and a graduate of Emory University in Atlanta. The photographers for Confronted are Albert and David Maysles, two pioneer film makers from New York City who have received wide recognition for their work.
This is an excerpt from the documentary "Confronted," a 1963 production for the National Educational Television by WGBH-TV, Boston. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche). The full program is available from the American Archive of Public Broadcasting.