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{{short description|American news/interview television program}}{{About|the American public affairs program|the Australian program|Meet the Press (Australian TV program)}}

factoids

Kristen Welker(for past moderators, #Moderators>see section)| narrated = Fred FaceyBert PenceDennis Haysbert| theme_music_composer = John WilliamsWORK=SLATE (MAGAZINE)>DATE=APRIL 2003, (fourth Movement (music) of The Mission (theme song)>The Mission)| endtheme = | composer = | country = United States| language = English| num_seasons = 70| num_episodes = 3,600+| list_episodes = | executive_producer = David P. Gelles| editor = | location = NBC News Washington Bureau, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.Multi-camera setup>Multi-camera| runtime = 30 minutes (1947–1992)60 minutes (1992–present)NBC News>NBC News Productions| network = NBCMeet the Press is a weekly American television Sunday morning talk show broadcast on NBC.WEB, Meet the Press: Cast & Details,weblink TV Guide, December 30, 2008, WEB, About Meet The Press,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20040203034332weblink">weblink dead, February 3, 2004, MSNBC, December 30, 2008, It is the longest-running program on American television, though its format has changed since the debut episode on November 6, 1947.WEB, Meet the Press: U.S. Public Affairs/Interview,weblink Museum of Broadcast Communications, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120925203233weblink">weblink September 25, 2012, WEB, 2012-12-31, About 'Meet the Press' – Meet the Press – About us {{!, NBC News |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3403008/ns/meet_the_press-about_us/ |access-date=2023-10-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121231174208weblink |archive-date=2012-12-31 }} Meet the Press specializes in interviews with leaders in Washington, D.C., across the country, and around the world on issues of politics, economics, foreign policy, and other public affairs, along with panel discussions that provide opinions and analysis. In January 2021, production moved to NBC's bureau on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.WEB, Johnson, Ted, NBCU Debuts New Washington Bureau And Studios,weblink Deadline, 26 January 2021, 25 January 2021, BOOK, Rick, Ball, Meet the Press: Fifty Years of History in the Making, McGraw Hill,weblink 12 (Farley), 14–15 (Chambers), 15–17 (Bentley), 51–53 (Castro), 67–68 (JFK) 92 (MLK), 167 (satellite), 1998, 18 March 2020, The longevity of Meet the Press is attributable in part to the fact that the program debuted during what was only the second official "network television season" for American television. It was the first live television network news program on which a sitting president of the United States appeared, this occurred on its broadcast on November 9, 1975, which featured Gerald Ford. The program has been hosted by 12 moderators, beginning with creator Martha Rountree. The show's current moderator is Kristen Welker, who became moderator in September 2023 following longtime moderator Chuck Todd’s departure.Meet the Press airs Sundays from 9–10 a.m. ET on the NBC-TV network; 10:30–11:30 a.m. ET in New York and Washington. The program also re-airs at 2 p.m. ET Sundays and 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. ET Mondays on MSNBC on cable.WEB, 2023-09-18, Watch NBC's 'Meet the Press with Kristen Welker' in your area,weblink 2024-01-07, NBC News, en, Meet the Press is also occasionally pre-empted by network coverage of sports events held outside the U.S. The program is also rebroadcast on Mondays at 2:30 a.m. Eastern Time on MSNBC, whose audio feed is also simulcast on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio. The program is syndicated by Westwood One to various radio stations around the United States, and is on C-SPAN Radio as part of its replays of the Sunday morning talk shows.

Format

The program's format consists of an extended one-on-one interview with the host, and is sometimes followed by a roundtable discussion or one-on-two interview with figures in adversarial positions, either Congressional members from opposite sides of the aisle or political commentators. A half-hour program for the first 45 years of its history, the show was expanded to 60 minutes starting with the broadcast on September 20, 1992.WEB, Memorable Tim Russert moments,weblink David Paul Kuhn, Politico (newspaper), Politico, 2008-06-13, 2008-06-14, The program also features in-depth examinations of facts behind political and general news stories (particularly as part of a segment called the "Data Download," introduced after Chuck Todd assumed duties as moderator, which is conducted on a touchscreen within the main set).

History

(File:Meet the Press with Tim Russert Logo 2005.png|thumb|Logo used since 2005)File:meetthepress110975.jpg|right|thumb|Meet the Press set, November 1975. On this broadcast, a sitting American president (Gerald FordGerald Ford(File:Meet the Press 1988.svg|thumb|Logo used from 1988 to 1990.)(File:Meet the Press 1990.svg|thumb|Logo used from 1990 to September 3, 1995,)Meet the Press began on radio on the Mutual Broadcasting System in 1945 as American Mercury Presents: Meet the Press,WEB, 60 Years Ago in News History: America Meets the Press,weblink Newseum,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20081117170923weblink">weblink November 17, 2008, a program to promote The American Mercury, a magazine that Lawrence Spivak purchased in 1935.NEWS, January 23, 1935, American Mercury Sold to L. E. Spivak,weblink The New York Times, 2017-08-02, Before the program aired, Spivak had asked journalist Martha Rountree, who had worked in radio and had been employed by Spivak as a roving editor for the magazine, to critique plans for a new radio show. As a result, Rountree created a new radio program that she called The American Mercury, on October 5, 1945.WEB, Martha Rountree: Radio/Television Producer, Writer, Host,weblink shemadeit.org, The Paley Center for Media, Paley Center for Media, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20160304032421weblink">weblink 2016-03-04, On November 6, 1947,WEB, Jay, Robert, WNBT Schedule, Week of November 2nd, 1947,weblink TV Obscurities, 7 November 2017, Robert Jay, 28 October 2020, while still on the Mutual Broadcasting System, the television rights to the program were purchased by General Foods. They began to air the show on the NBC television network with the title shortened to simply Meet the Press. The radio version then adopted the new name.Although some sources credit Spivak with the program's creation, Rountree developed the idea on her own, and Spivak joined as co-producer and business partner in the enterprise after the show had already debuted.{{more citations needed|section, in the next two paragraphs,|date=September 2014}}Meet the Press was originally presented as a 30-minute press conference with a single guest and a panel of questioners. Its first guest was James Farley, who served as Postmaster General, Democratic National Committee chairman and campaign manager to Franklin Delano Roosevelt under the first two terms of the New Deal Administration. Martha Rountree served as its first host, the program's only female moderator until 2023. She stepped down on November 1, 1953, and was succeeded by Ned Brooks, who remained as moderator until his retirement on December 26, 1965. Spivak became the moderator on January 1, 1966, moving up from his role as a permanent panelist. He retired on November 9, 1975, on a special one-hour edition that featured a sitting president as guest for the first time, in this case Gerald Ford. The next week, Bill Monroe, previously a weekly panelist like Spivak had been years before, took over as moderator and stayed until June 2, 1984.For the next seven and a half years, the program then went through a series of hosts as it struggled in the ratings against ABC's This Week with David Brinkley. Roger Mudd and Marvin Kalb, as co-moderators, followed Monroe for a year, followed by Chris Wallace (who would later go on to a much longer run as host of the rival program Fox News Sunday) from 1987 to 1988. Garrick Utley, then hosting Weekend Today, concurrently hosted Meet the Press from 1989 through December 1, 1991. All this occurred despite the increasing ratings of NBC News' other programs (and those of the network generally) during that period. The program originally aired at noon Eastern Time every Sunday (leading into NFL Live incongruously in the fall) before moving to a 9:00 a.m. slot by the early 1990s when it expanded to an hour.

Under Russert

(File:Tv nbc meet the press with tim russert logo.jpg|thumb|right|Meet the Press logo used from September 10, 1995 to June 8, 2008.)File:US Navy 060305-F-0193C-009 Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, U.S. Marine Corps, Gen. Peter Pace, responds to a question asked by host Tim Russert during an interview on NBC's Meet the Press.jpg|thumb|Russert interviews General Peter PacePeter PaceNetwork officials, concerned for the show's future, turned to Tim Russert, the network's bureau chief in Washington, D.C. He took over as moderator of Meet the Press on December 8, 1991, and remained with the program until his death on June 13, 2008, becoming the longest-serving moderator in the program's history.WEB, Fast facts about the longest-running program in TV history,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20071121225114weblink">weblink dead, 2007-11-21, MSNBC.com, Under Russert, the program was expanded to one hour and became less of a televised press conference, focusing more on Russert's questions and comments, Russert also engaged in longer in-depth interviews and hosted panels of experts to discuss the topics featured in that week's broadcast. Russert signed off each edition by saying, "That's all for today. We'll be back next week. If it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press."During the professional football season, Russert, a native of Buffalo, New York, and an avid fan of the Buffalo Bills,NEWS, In the Hot Seat,weblink The Washington Post, May 23, 2004, May 12, 2010, WEB, Tim Russert's Commencement Address – CUA Office of Public Affairs,weblink sometimes added, "Go Bills!," and occasionally would ask panelists, "How 'bout those Sabres?" if Buffalo's NHL hockey team was doing well. Spoofs of the show featured in a recurring sketch on Saturday Night Live often reflected his impromptu additions in support of the two professional sports franchises. By 2006, Meet the Press was the highest-rated program among the Sunday morning talk shows.NEWS, Tim Russert hits ratings milestone,weblink USA Today, April 24, 2006, On June 13, 2008, Russert died of a sudden coronary thrombosis (caused by a cholesterol plaque rupture).WEB, NBC's Tim Russert dead at 58,weblink Jill Lawrence, USA Today, June 14, 2008, December 14, 2008, Former NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Brokaw hosted a special edition of Meet the Press dedicated to the life of Russert on June 15, 2008, in which Russert's chair was left empty as a tribute.WEB, NBC remembers Russert on first 'Meet the Press' since his death,weblink CNN.com/US, June 15, 2008, December 14, 2014,

After Russert

Mark Whitaker was named by NBC News as the division's Washington, D.C. Bureau Chief and was given "executive oversight" of Meet the Press.

Interim Brokaw era

NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams acted as moderator of the first show following the tribute to Russert on June 15, 2008, with the same guests and subject matter that Russert was planning for when he died.WEB, June 22: Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), political roundtable,weblink NBC News, June 22, 2008, Following Russert's death, Tom Brokaw was named the interim moderator through the 2008 general elections.WEB, NBC's Tom Brokaw to moderate 'Meet the Press' through election,weblink NBC News, 22 June 2008, June 22, 2008, Brokaw followed Russert's tradition by signing off with "We'll be back next Sunday because if it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press" (a sign-off that continues to be used by his successors as moderator). In September of that year, the show was presented with limited commercial interruption.On August 10, 2008, David Gregory moderated the panel discussion during the second half-hour of the broadcast, while Brokaw anchored the first half-hour from the site of the Summer Olympics in Beijing. The following week on August 17, 2008, he moderated the entire broadcast. On December 1, 2008, it was also reported that the December 7, 2008 broadcast would be Brokaw's last, with Gregory becoming the new permanent host the following Sunday.NEWS, Gregory to host 'Meet the Press',weblink Mike Allen, Politico, December 1, 2008,

Under Gregory

David Gregory began his tenure as moderator on December 14, 2008. Four days after Gregory's first regular broadcast, on December 18, 2008, NBC News political director Chuck Todd was named contributing editor of Meet the Press. Throughout Gregory's tenure as moderator, Meet the Press experienced significant ratings declines. In the final three months of 2013, the program placed third among the Sunday morning talk shows in total viewership, behind CBS's Face the Nation and ABC's This Week, for the first time since 1992. It also experienced the lowest ratings in the show's entire history among the key 25-to-54 age viewing demographic during this period.WEB, NBC's 'Meet The Press' hits historic lows in the final quarter of 2013, 6 January 2014,weblink Politico, August 14, 2014, NBC management became uncertain as to the future direction of the program.NEWS, C staff irked as NBC News eyes cuts,weblink Claire Atkinson, New York Post, December 21, 2013, December 23, 2013, A new set was introduced on May 2, 2010, featuring video screens and library-style bookshelves, Gregory would preview the guests to be featured during each week's broadcast using a large video screen. Different, modified intro music was also introduced, with the Meet the Press theme music in a shorter "modernized [style]... the beginning repeated with drum beats" (see "High-definition broadcasting" below for additional information).WEB, Gregory to host 'Meet the Press',weblink Mike Allen, Politico, December 2, 2008, December 30, 2008,

Under Todd

(File:Meet the Press 2010.png|thumb|right|Logo used from May 2, 2010 to August 10, 2014.)(File:Meet The Press August 17-31, 2014.png|thumb|right|Logo used from August 17, 2014 to August 31, 2014.)(File:Meet the Press.png|thumb|right|Meet the Press logo used from May 2, 2010 (introduced under former moderator David Gregory) to November 5, 2017.)(File:Meet The Press Logo 2017 -.png|thumb|right|Meet the Press logo used from November 5, 2017 to September 10, 2023.)File:Chris Murphy on Meet the Press.jpg|thumb|Senator Chris MurphyChris MurphyFile:President Barack Obama participates in an interview with Chuck Todd, new host of NBC's "Meet The Press" in the Cabinet Room of the White House.jpg|thumb|U.S. President Barack ObamaBarack ObamaIn response to declining viewership, rumors surfaced in August 2014 that Gregory would be replaced as the program's moderator. NBC News President Deborah Turness apparently had held discussions with Jon Stewart (then-host of Comedy Central's news comedy program The Daily Show) to replace Gregory,WEB, NBC Wanted to Hire Jon Stewart to Host Meet the Press,weblink Gabriel Sherman, New York (magazine), New York Daily Intelligencer, October 8, 2014, December 14, 2014, which Stewart later confirmed in a Rolling Stone interview, saying, "My guess is they were casting as wide and as weird a net as they could. I'm sure part of them was thinking, 'Why don't we just make it a variety show?{{'"}}MAGAZINE, Jon Stewart on 'Meet The Press' Offer: 'They Were Casting a Wide and Weird Net',weblink Rolling Stone, Andy Greene, October 30, 2014, December 14, 2014, On August 14, 2014, Turness announced that Chuck Todd, NBC's chief White House correspondent, would take over the role of moderator on September 7, 2014.WEB, Chuck Todd Takes Helm of 'Meet the Press',weblink NBC News, 14 August 2014, August 14, 2014, Because of Todd's fanhood, a Los Angeles Dodgers poster became part of the physical format.

Meet the Press Now

On September 28, 2015, MSNBC premiered MTP Daily, a weekday spin-off also hosted by Todd. It formally replaced The Ed Show as MSNBC's early-evening program after a transitional period following its cancellation. MSNBC explained that the program is meant to "bring the insight and power of Meet the Press to our air every day of the week.”WEB,weblink Chuck Todd's 'MTP Daily' Debut Clocks 483K Viewers, de Moraes, Lisa, September 29, 2015, Deadline, June 15, 2017,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20170615212418weblink">weblink June 15, 2017, By 2022, the show was airing in the 1:00 p.m. Eastern slot, and in May it was announced that the show would be moving from MSNBC to the free streaming platform NBC News NOW, and rechristened Meet the Press Now, starting June 6, 2022. The show also returned to an early evening slot of 4:00 p.m. Eastern.WEB, Johnson, Ted, Chuck Todd's 'Meet The Press Daily' To Move From MSNBC To Streaming Platform NBC News Now,weblink Deadline, May 6, 2022, May 6, 2022,

Disinformation overtaking media

In a December 2019 interview with Rolling Stone, Todd discussed how disinformation overtook the media during the Trump administration.WEB, Wade, Peter,weblink How Disinformation Spreads, According to Chuck Todd, Rolling Stone, 20 December 2019, However, PressThink, a project of the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University, took Todd to task for failing to address the issue as it unfolded,WEB, Rosen, Jay,weblink The Christmas Eve Confessions of Chuck Todd, PressThink, 26 December 2019, in a very detailed discussion of Todd's remarks.

Under Welker

On June 4, 2023, Todd announced he would be leaving his role as moderator. Kristen Welker was named as his replacement for the flagship Meet the Press beginning in September, while spin off Meet the Press Now featured rotating guest hosts, with Welker only hosting Meet The Press Now on Thursdays and Fridays.WEB, 2023-06-04, Chuck Todd will depart 'Meet the Press.' Kristen Welker will be the next host,weblink 2023-06-04, NBC News, en,

High-definition broadcasting

The set utilized from March 17, 1996 to April 25, 2010,WEB, Meet the Press reflects on set change,weblink NBCNews.com, August 14, 2014, had been designed as an experimental set for high-definition broadcasting, several editions of the program (including the first broadcast of a regular series on a major television network in HD) had aired in the format in the 1990s over experimental HD station WHD-TV in Washington, D.C.BOOK, Robert L, Hilliard, Michael C, Keith, The Broadcast Century and Beyond: A Biography of American Broadcasting, Focal Press, February 18, 2010, 978-0240812366,weblink May 7, 2017, Despite this, the program continued to be transmitted in NTSC over the NBC network itself. On May 2, 2010, Meet the Press became the last NBC News program to convert to high definition, and unveiled a new set consisting of large video screens mostly used to display Washington scenery, satellite interview subjects and moderator and subject talking points, along with graphics produced for the format.WEB, Sunday, May 2: 'Meet the Press' to broadcast in HD, debut a new set,weblink NBC News, May 2, 2010, In January 2021, production of the program moved from WRC-TV facilities in Tenleytown to a ground floor studio in NBC's new Washington D.C. bureau on Capitol Hill. The move included a new set.WEB, Hill, Michael P., New 'Meet the Press' studio pays tribute to heart of democracy, free exchange of ideas,weblink NewscastStudio, 26 January 2021, 25 January 2021,

Moderators

The following is the list of moderators for Meet the Press:WEB , {| class="wikitable"! Moderator! Date| Martha Rountree| 1947–1953| Ned Brooks| 1953–1965| Lawrence Spivak| 1966–1975Bill Monroe (journalist)>Bill Monroe| 1975–1984| Roger Mudd and Marvin Kalb (co-moderators)| 1984–1985| Marvin Kalb| 1985–1987| Chris Wallace| 1987–1988| Garrick Utley| 1989–1991| Tim Russert| 1991–2008| Tom Brokaw | 2008David Gregory (journalist)>David Gregory| 2008–2014| Andrea Mitchell| 2014| Chuck Todd| 2014–2023 | Kristen Welker| 2023–

Notable guests and events

File:Whittaker_Chambers.jpg|thumb|right|Whittaker ChambersWhittaker Chambers

• First guest: James A. Farley, the former Postmaster General of the United States and former Democratic National Committee Chair.
• Whittaker Chambers states Alger Hiss was a communist on the radio broadcast on August 27, 1948, which leads to libel suit from Hiss, the Pumpkin Papers, and Justice's indictment of Hiss by December 1948.
• First female guest: Elizabeth Bentley, a courier for a Communist spy ring, on September 12, 1948.
• An interview with Fidel Castro aired April 19, 1959.BOOK, Harris, Jay S., TV Guide: The First 25 Years, 1978, Simon & Schuster, New York, 0671230654, 44,
• An interview with Martin Luther King Jr., about the civil rights movement in the United States.
• Every U.S. president since John F. Kennedy has appeared on Meet the Press, although not necessarily during their presidency. Jimmy Carter used his appearance on January 20, 1980, to announce the United States' boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics. Ronald Reagan appeared seven times before being elected president, but did not appear during his presidency. Bill Clinton was the guest for the 50th anniversary broadcast on November 9, 1997. The interview with George W. Bush was conducted in the Oval Office at the White House on February 8, 2004. The interview was held with then President-elect Barack Obama on December 7, 2008. Donald Trump has appeared on the program a number of times, most recently in September 2023.
• The first live communications satellite television interview occurred on Meet the Press on September 19, 1965, with the British Prime Minister Harold Wilson.
• A special edition of the program aired on Christmas Day 2022 to commemorate its 75th anniversary, consisting entirely of clips from the program archives and brief introductory commentaries by Todd.WEB,weblink Dec. 25 – Looking back at 75 years of 'Meet the Press', NBC News, National Broadcasting Company, 25 December 2022,

Distribution

In addition to its broadcasts on NBC, Meet the Press also airs on various other NBCUniversal-owned channels domestically and internationally, including MSNBC, NBC News Now, CNBC Europe in Europe and CNBC Asia in Asia. It is also broadcast in Australia on the Seven Network and in the Philippines on 9TV.Meet the Press is also available as an audio or video podcast,WEB, Free audio and video downloaded to your PC or portable player,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20050714031627weblink">weblink dead, 2005-07-14, msnbc.com, and is simulcast on radio stations by Westwood One (which also handles distribution of all other NBC-produced radio programming, including NBC News Radio).WEB, Meet the Press,weblink Dial Global, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120315094745weblink">weblink March 15, 2012,

See also

• The Mission (theme music)

References and footnotes

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

External links

{{commons category}}

• {{Official websiteweblink}}
• {{IMDb title|0149490|Meet the Press}}

{{NBC News Personalities}}{{AmericanSundayNewsTalkShows}}{{NBCNetwork Shows (current and upcoming)}}{{MSNBC programming}}