The show origins were with a show titled Martin Agronsky: Evening Edition on a local PBS affiliate in Washington, WETA, in 1971 The re-titled showed went national in 1976 on PBS affiliates and syndicated by the shows producer, the Post-Newsweek company. The host Martin Agronsky was a distinguished journalist who gained national prominence as the host of the long running CBS interview show "Face the Nation". At the time, Face the Nation used the dominant format for the network Sunday morning interview shows. Similar to a press conference, a prominent figure in politics or the news would be interviewed by a panel of reporters and journalists. Each panelist would ask their questions in turn, with no interaction with each other. In contrast, the Agronsky show popularized the "Journalist Round Table Discussion" format used by other more well more known shows, such as the McLaughlin Group and PPS's Washington Week in Review.