FOX News Channel (FNC) will present a town hall with 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, IN on Sunday, May 19th, announced Jay Wallace, President and Executive Editor of FOX News and FOX Business Network. Moderated by FOX News Sunday’s Chris Wallace, the town hall will take place live from 7-8PM/ET in Claremont, NH and focus on the top issues facing voters.
In making the announcement, Jay Wallace said, “We look forward to hosting Mayor Buttigieg in New Hampshire and again showcasing our first-in-class journalism and election coverage.”
This marks the fourth such event of the current election season hosted by FNC and will be the third with a Democratic presidential candidate. Most recently, Special Report’s Bret Baier and The Story’s Martha MacCallum held a town hall with 2020 frontrunner Sen. Bernie Sanders which was the highest rated of the election cycle, garnering nearly 2.6 million viewers, preceded by a town hall with Howard Schultz which drew more than 1.9 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. Additionally, the network announced a town hall last week with 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) scheduled for May 8th in Milwaukee, WI.
The Buttigieg town hall will be moderator Chris Wallace’s first of the season. During his tenure at FOX News, Wallace has participated in coverage of nearly every major political event and has played an integral role in the network’s 2016, 2012, 2008 and 2004 election coverage. Most notably, Wallace was the first journalist from FOX News to moderate a general election presidential debate, which took place at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in October 2016. He received praise from both sides of the aisle for his tough questioning of then presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton at the third and final debate leading up to the election.
As anchor of FOX News Sunday, Wallace joined the network in 2003 and is based in Washington, D.C. In 2014, he marked his 50th year in broadcasting. Wallace has secured several high-profile interviews with dignitaries and U.S leaders including: a widely praised sit down with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Helsinki Summit in 2018; an exclusive interview with French President Emmanuel Macron; the first interview with President Donald Trump after he was elected in 2016; an interview with then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, and an exclusive interview with then-President Barack Obama in 2016.
FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service delivering breaking news as well as political and business news. The number one network in cable, FNC has been the most watched television news channel for 17 consecutive years. According to a 2019 Suffolk University poll, FOX News is the most trusted source for television news or commentary in the country while a 2019 Brand Keys Emotion Engagement Brand Analysis survey found that FOX News was the most trusted cable news brand. A 2017 Gallup/Knight Foundation survey also found that among Americans who could name an objective news source, FOX News is the top-cited outlet. Owned by FOX Corporation, FNC is available in nearly 90 million homes and dominates the cable news landscape, routinely notching the top ten programs in the genre.