Nexstar Broadcasting To Host Exclusive Live Statewide Telecast of Debate for United States Senate Seat from North Carolina Tonight at 7 P.M.
Nexstar’s Portfolio of Television Stations Covering the State of North Carolina to Bring Live Debate Coverage To Nearly Nine Million Viewers in 100 Counties Across the State
Exclusive Nexstar/CBS17/Emerson College Poll Shows Senate Race Too Close to Call
Candidates to be Asked About Filling Vacancy on U.S. Supreme Court
RALEIGH, NC and IRVING, TX (Sept. 22, 2020) – Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXST), is hosting an exclusive multi-market live telecast of a debate between the Democratic and Republican party candidates for the United States Senate from North Carolina, incumbent Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) and former North Carolina State Senator Cal Cunningham. “U.S. Senate Debate – North Carolina” will take place tonight, Tuesday, September 22, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. ET, at the studios of WNCN/CBS 17 in Raleigh, NC, and be telecast throughout the state.
A new CBS 17/Emerson College poll shows Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham with a lead over incumbent Sen. Thom Tillis (R) in the North Carolina Senate race. Monday’s poll asked voters for whom they would cast their vote in the North Carolina Senate race if the election were held today. Cunningham received 48.9 percent while Tillis had 43 percent. A total of 8.1 percent of those polled said they were undecided. https://www.cbs17.com/news/your-local-election-hq/tillis-cunningham-debate/cbs-17-emerson-college-poll-shows-cunningham-with-lead-over-tillis/
Tonight’s one-hour debate will potentially bring together nearly nine million viewers in 100 counties across North Carolina and will air on seven Nexstar television stations serving the state, including: WNCN-TV (CBS) in Raleigh, WJZY-TV (FOX) in Charlotte, WGHP-TV (FOX) in Greensboro, WNCT-TV (CBS) in Greenville, WYCW-TV (CW) in Spartanburg, SC, and WVBT (FOX) in Norfolk, VA. WAVY-TV (NBC) in Norfolk will carry a livestream of the debate. Local viewers may also access a live-stream of the debate online by visiting the website of their local Nexstar station (see table below for more information). WWAY-TV (CBS) in Wilmington, NC will also carry the debate live.
The debate will be moderated by WNCN CBS 17 News anchor Marius Payton and include WNCN/CBS 17 News anchor Angela Taylor and WGHP FOX 8 senior political reporter Bob Buckley, who will pose questions to the candidates focused on current local and regional issues impacting communities across North Carolina. The candidates will be asked for their views on the Supreme Court vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, as well as education, health care, the coronavirus pandemic, infrastructure and the economy.
In addition to taking questions from the moderator and panelists, the candidates will respond to questions from local voters regarding issues that impact their local communities. Viewers can submit questions for the debate via email to sendit@cbs17.com, and can follow the debate and related content on social media using the hashtag #ncsenatedebate. “U.S. Senate Debate – North Carolina” will be followed by “Post Debate Live” at 8 p.m. ET, a continuing one-hour live broadcast with post-debate analysis, in depth interviews with the candidates and reaction from the community to this important political event. Viewers can also access “Post Debate Live” via livestream on the website of the local Nexstar television station serving their area.
As part of Tuesday’s North Carolina Senate debate, the reaction of undecided voters will be tracked providing real-time response. The second-screen experience will be part of Nexstar’s multi-market live telecast. A panel of nine to twelve undecided voters, who will be watching the debate live tonight will have an interactive dial in their hands that they can turn to a positive reaction if they agree or a negative reaction if they disagree with a response to a topic.
The election for U.S. Senator from North Carolina will take place on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. To register to vote, please visit https://www.ncsbe.gov/Voters/Registering-to-Vote. For more information regarding the upcoming elections, including early voting dates, polling locations and voter identification requirements, please visit https://www.ncsbe.gov/index.html.
U.S. Senate Debate – North Carolina Television Broadcast and Live-Stream
WNCN/CBS 17 Studios – 1205 Front Street, Raleigh, NC 27609
Tuesday, September 22, 2020
7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
Moderators:
- Marius Payton, WNCN CBS17 News Anchor @mpaytoncbs17
- Angela Taylor, WNCN CBS17 News Anchor @angeladtaylor
- Bob Buckley, WGHP FOX8 Senior Political Reporter @bobbuckleywghp
The U.S. Senate Debate will be carried on the following stations and websites:
| Station | Network | Market | Station Website | Social |
| WNCN-TV | CBS | Raleigh, NC | cbs17.com | @WNCN |
| WJZY-TV | FOX | Charlotte, NC | fox46.com | @FOX46News |
| WYCW-TV | CW | Spartanburg, SC/Asheville, NC | wspa.com | @WSPA7 |
| WVBT | FOX | Norfolk, VA | wavy.com | @WAVY_news |
| WGHP-TV | FOX | Greensboro/Winston-Salem, NC | myfox8.com | @myfox8.com |
| WNCT-TV | CBS | Greenville, NC | wnct.com | @wnct9 |
| WWAY-TV | CBS | Wilmington, NC | wwaytv3.com | @wway |
Note: In addition to the live television broadcast, viewers may also access a livestream of the Senate Debate by visiting their local participating Nexstar station’s website. WAVY-TV in Norfolk, VA will also carry a livestream of the debate.
About Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Nexstar Media Group is a leading diversified media company that leverages localism to bring new services and value to consumers and advertisers through its traditional media, digital and mobile media platforms. Nexstar owns, operates, programs or provides sales and other services to 197 television stations and related digital multicast signals reaching 115 markets or nearly 39% of all U.S. television households. Nexstar’s portfolio includes primary affiliates of NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, MyNetworkTV and The CW. Nexstar’s community portal websites offer additional hyper-local content and verticals for consumers and advertisers, allowing audiences to choose where, when and how they access content while creating new revenue opportunities. For more information please visit www.nexstar.tv.
Contact:
Chris Berg
Senior Director of Local Content Development
Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc.
972/373-8800
John Rice
Director of Marketing
WNCN/CBS 17 News
919-835-6435
jrice@cbs17.com
Gary Weitman
EVP & Chief Communications Officer
Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
312/222-3394 or gweitman@nexstar.tv
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