US President Joe Biden and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump meet for their first debate this week. Here’s how to watch.
Maybe you’re a US citizen who’s in Australia and wants to make an informed vote in this year’s US Presidential election. Or, more likely, you are just a citizen of the world who wants to watch incumbent Joe Biden and the former guy, convicted felon Donald Trump, go head-to-head live in the first Presidential debate this week.
This first debate of 2024 is being hosted by CNN, moderated by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, and will run for 90 minutes.
In Australia, you can watch the debate in its entirety this Friday 28 June. Simulcast live from Atlanta, Georgia, the Presidential debate starts at 11:00am AEST. Of course, you can see it on CNN via Foxtel – it will also be carried by several networks, including Seven, Nine, SBS and SBS On Demand.
And, in good timing for the debate, Sky News Australia launches ‘Sky News Election Channel’ on Friday 28 June, covering the campaign trails across Australia and the world on a dedicated political news channel.
Broadcast from CNN’s studios in Atlanta, the first Presidential debate breaks from long-standing tradition. Following an agreement between the Biden and Trump campaigns, they’ve sidestepped the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), which typically sets out the rules for these matchups and coordinates debates, which are usually held in front of a live audience.
Breaking from tradition, this first debate (and a second in September hosted by ABC News), is happening months earlier than usual. There are new rules agreed to by the candidates, including no live audience:
Microphones will be muted unless a candidate is directed to speak.
Candidates are not allowed to bring any prewritten notes or props. They will receive pen and paper, and also a bottle of water.
A coin toss determined podium positions and the order of closing statements. Biden’s campaign won the coin toss, says CNN, and chose the podium to the viewers’ right. And the Trump team has chosen to deliver the final closing statement of the evening.
The US Presidential election takes place on November 5, 2024.
