An American public affairs show founded in and hosted by conservative author and columnist William F. Buckley Jr. from 1966 to 1999, and relaunched in 2018 with host Margaret Hoover. The show began in 1966 on commercial TV on New York's WOR-TV before it moved to PBS in 1971 under the auspices of the Southern Educational Communications Association, an arm of South Carolina Educational Television. This was somewhat unusual, given the reputation among many conservatives that PBS unfairly discriminated against non-liberal viewpoints in its other programming. SECA/SCETV, however, was one of the very few public broadcasting entities of the time that was sympathetic to the conservative movement. On top of this, the program had already been carried by a number of individual PBS (and its predecessor National Educational Television) stations for a number of years. Because the program received a relatively unfavorable Sunday evening time slot on PBS' schedule in the early 1970s, Buckley and long-time director Warren Steibel briefly attempted to return Firing Line to commercial TV, but could not find sponsors. Thus, the program would remain on PBS until Buckley and Steibel discontinued production on December 17, 1999, with Buckley's final episode airing December 26, 1999. Although the program's format varied over the years, it typically featured Buckley interviewing, and exchanging views with, a guest, while seated together in front of a small studio audience. Standing or sitting further away in the studio, an "examiner", typically a liberal, would ask questions, generally toward the end of the show. Most guests were intellectuals or those in positions of power, being notable in the fields of politics, religion, literature and academia. Their views could either sharply contrast or be in strong agreement with Buckley's. As a standout, the exchanges were always polite and guests were given time to answer questions in great length.