Tonight at 8 p.m. central time on NPT-Channel 8 is the first of two “All-American Presidential Forums” on PBS to be moderated by Tavis Smiley. Tonight’s forum features the Democratic candidates — U.S. Senator Joe Biden, U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton, U.S. Senator Christopher Dodd, former U.S. Senator John Edwards, former U.S. Senator Mike Gravel, U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich, U.S. Senator Barack Obama and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.
The historic broadcast, live from Cramton Auditorium at Howard University in Washington, DC, marks the first time that a panel comprised exclusively of journalists of color will be represented in primetime. Smiley, along with journalists Michel Martin of National Public Radio, nationally syndicated columnist Ruben Navarrette Jr. and USA Today and Gannett News Service columnist DeWayne Wickham, will question candidates on issues ranging from healthcare and housing to Katrina relief, the economy and the environment, among others, as outlined in the #1 The New York Times best-seller, Covenant With Black America. This forum will provide the first major opportunity for the candidates to present a detailed discourse and dialogue on their social agendas.
(A second forum for Republican presidential candidates will be held on September 27, 2007, on the campus of Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland.)