15th District debate set for Muhlenberg College
Plans are set for a major-party debate in the 15th Congressional District at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 14 at Baker Theatre in the Trexler Pavilion for Theatre and Dance at Muhlenberg College.Friday, September 17, 2010 11:45 AM
Republican Charlie Dent and Democrat John Callahan will face each other one-on-one before a live audience in a program to be televised on PBS 39.
The debate is co-sponsored by The Morning Call, PBS 39, the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce and is being hosted by Muhlenberg College.
The ticketed event is open and free to the public. Tickets were provided from the debate partners. A limited number of additional seats also will be available the night of the debate. Doors open for the public at 6 p.m. and close at 6:45 p.m. due to the live production.
Amy Burkett, senior vice president of production at PBS39, will moderate the debate, which will include panelists from The Morning Call as well as questions from a Muhlenberg College student and from Tony Iannelli, president/CEO of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. Colby Itkowitz, The Morning Call’s Washington correspondent, and Scott Kraus, a Morning Call veteran political reporter, are on the panel.
The public will be able to submit video questions via Facebook in advance. The candidates also are being invited to participate at noon Oct. 15 in a Morning Call-PBS39 discussion on the media partners’ websites.
“With questions from college students, the Chamber, from the public via Facebook and our panel of journalists, we will be offering TV viewers a lively and informative exchange,” said David Erdman, editor / vice president of The Morning Call.
“This also will be an opportunity for the candidates to speak to a cross-section of the community.”
The debate will be aired live on PBS39 courtesy of Service Electric Cable TV, will be rebroadcast on the Pennsylvania Cable Network and made available to other media.
"PBS39 looks forward to bringing the candidates’ views in this important race to our viewers,” said Burkett. “We see sharing information to inform voters as an important part of our mission and we look forward to working with all of our partners to do that."
Republican Dent, of Allentown, is the incumbent lawmaker. Democrat Callahan is mayor of Bethlehem.
The debate partners invited candidates who qualified for the November ballot and who showed 5 percent or greater support in a Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll of the 15th District. The threshold was modeled after guidelines of the Commission on Presidential Debates, which requires candidates to have a level of support of at least 15 percent.
THE MORNING CALL is the region’s leading newspaper and themorningcall.com is the No. 1 local news website in the Lehigh Valley.
PBS39 is a community-owned public television station serving eastern Pennsylvania.
MUHLENBERG COLLEGE, founded in 1848, is a private, four-year liberal arts college in Allentown.
PCN is a nonprofit, nonpartisan cable television network responsive to the interests and needs of Pennsylvania and its people.
