On Sept. 10, 2011, “Freedom Riders”—the film based on USF St. Petersburg history professor Ray Arsenault’s 2006 book “Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice”—won three Emmy awards. The film won in all three categories nominated; Exceptional Merit in Nonfiction Filmmaking, Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming and Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming.