Reservation Dogs, Abbott Elementary, Dopesick and Hacks are among the television series set to be honored at the 2022 Sentinel Awards.
The gala event will celebrate 12 series from broadcast, cable and streaming that tackled powerful and timely topics including racism, mental health and abortion. Hollywood, Health & Society (HH&S), a program from the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center, will present the awards live and in-person on Oct. 25.
FX’s Reservation Dogs, co-created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi, will be honored with the Culture of Health Award for its first season. The Culture of Health Award recognizes TV’s transformative power to impact audiences with visionary storytelling that addresses critical and complex issues of health, well-being and equity across a diverse society. The first season featured humorous storylines about subjects including health care, economic disparities, aging, caregiving, mental health and racism.
Resident Alien, Harlem and Upload are among the narratives being honored for using humor to highlight important messages. A Million Little Things, Never Have I Ever, The First Lady and The White Lotus will also be recognized.
“What a thrill to announce that our annual Sentinel Awards is returning this year to a live venue, and for the first time at the Television Academy,” HH&S director Kate Folb said in a statement. “We’re delighted to celebrate the good work these shows are doing — and their accurate and compelling depictions of serious topics. Now more than ever we find comfort in our favorite entertainment shows and the important stories they tell.”
Marty Kaplan, founding director of the Lear Center and HH&S principal investigator, said: “It’s great to be able to shine a spotlight on storytellers who entertain viewers and at the same time provide them with accurate information.”
The gala event will take place at the Television Academy’s Wolf Theater located at the Saban Media Center of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Presenters for the ceremony will be announced at a later date.
A complete list of the 2022 Sentinel Awards honorees follows.
Reservation Dogs (FX)
Season one body of work
Recipient of the “Culture of Health Award”
A Million Little Things (ABC)
“Fresh Start“
Topic: Abortion
Dopesick (Hulu)
“The People vs. Purdue Pharma“
Topic: Addiction
Hacks (HBO Max)
“On the Market“
Topic: Aging/caregiving
Upload (Amazon)
“Mind Frisk“
Topic: Artificial intelligence
The First Lady (Showtime)
“See Saw“
Topic: Breast cancer
Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock (Apple TV)
“Flight of the Flutterflies“
Topic: Children’s programming
Resident Alien (Syfy)
“Radio Harry“
Topic: Climate emergency
Abbott Elementary (ABC)
“Pilot“
Topic: Economic disparities (comedy)
The White Lotus (HBO)
“The Lotus-Eaters“
Topic: Economic disparities (drama)
Never Have I Ever (Netflix)
“… Stalked My Own Mother“
Topic: Mental health
Harlem (Amazon)
“The Strong Black Woman“
Topic: Racism
