Presidential debate: Start time, how to watch and stream first 2024 faceoff between Biden and Trump

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will face off Thursday night in Atlanta in the first of two scheduled presidential debates ahead of the 2024 election.

If you’re thinking it’s early for a presidential debate, that’s because it is. Thursday’s debate is the earliest in modern U.S. history, made possible because Biden and Trump have been the presumptive nominees for months, well before the conventions this summer.

The debate is also historic. It’s the first time the current president has taken the stage against a former president. It’ll also be the first time in nearly four years we’ll see either Biden or Trump on the debate state — Biden didn’t face a serious contender during the Democratic, and Trump skipped the debates during the Republican primary.

Another reason we’re getting a summer presidential debate, rather than three events in the fall: It’s a break from the decades-long run of the Commission of Presidential Debates, which has managed the events dating back to 1987.

Two CNN anchors will be moderating tonight’s debate — Philly native and The Lead host Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, the host of Inside Politics.

Eagle-eyed Philly viewers should keep an eye on Tapper’s cufflinks, which will be repping the National League-leading Phillies.

The 90-minute event will feature muted microphones, allowing candidates to deliver a full response without being interrupted. There also won’t be a studio audience, eliminating live reaction to the candidates’ remarks.

Despite having agreed to the terms, Trump complained about the rules during his rally in North Philly last week, telling his supporters CNN has “taken so much fun” out of the event.

“It’s like death to us,” Trump said.

Another departure from previous presidential debates is the inclusion of two commercial breaks. Candidates won’t be allowed to speak with their staff during the breaks, and will only be allowed to have a pen, a pad of paper, and a glass of water throughout. Prewritten notes are prohibited, and the candidates will stand for the duration.

While CNN is hosting the debate, it will also air on all major broadcast networks and cable news channels to an expected TV audience north of 70 million viewers (the first debate of the 2020 cycle, which took place in September, drew 73.1 million viewers).

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the debate:

The first president debate between Trump and Biden is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. Eastern and last an hour and a half.

The debate will be hard to miss. In addition to CNN, the event will air live on all major broadcast channels (ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, PBS) and cable news networks (C-SPAN, MSNBC, Fox Business, Fox News). It will also be available to stream on a host of so-called “skinny” cable bundles, such as YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, DirecTV Now, and FuboTV.

In order to carry the debate, networks had to agree to keep CNN’s logo on the screen and not break into the event with their own hosts and analysis until it’s over.

You can also stream the debate right here, courtesy of C-SPAN:

Ahead of the debate, Trump and his campaign have picked a fight with moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, despite having agreed to the terms months ago with CNN.

It began on Saturday night. During his rally on Temple’s campus in North Philly, the former president told his supporters, “Fake Tapper really hates Trump.”

The rhetoric escalated Monday, when Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavit attacked Tapper and Bash, calling their coverage of the former president “biased” before being cut off by CNN host Kasie Hunt.

“You come on my show, you respect my colleagues. Period,” Hunt wrote on social media following the interview. “I don’t care what side of the aisle you stand on, as my track record clearly shows.”

CNN defended its anchors in a statement, calling them “well respected veteran journalists who have covered politics for more than five decades combined,”

“They have extensive experience moderating major political debates, including CNN’s Republican Presidential Primary Debate this cycle,” CNN said.

Here are some recent stories about the 2024 election from The Inquirer:

The Trump and Biden campaigns have agreed to just two debates during the 2024 election:

A vice presidential debate that was scheduled to be held on Sept. 25 at Lafayette College between Vice President Kamala Harris and whomever Trump picks as his running mate was officially canceled this week. It is unclear if the vice presidential candidates will take a debate stage this election cycle.