The Daily Memphian to co-host mayoral debate Aug. 15
Neither Floyd Bonner nor former mayor Willie Herenton have committed to participate
The Daily Memphian and WKNO will co-host a Memphis mayoral debate Tuesday, Aug. 15. Invited candidates are (top row, left to right) Floyd Bonner, Karen Camper, Frank Colvett, J.W. Gibson, (bottom row, left to right) Willie Herenton, Michelle McKissack, Van Turner and Paul Young. (The Daily Memphian file)
(Ed. Note: For the most up-to-date information on the Aug. 15, 2023, debate, visit The Daily Memphian/WKNO Mayoral Debate page.)
In what will be one of the first widely broadcast forums for the Memphis mayoral election, The Daily Memphian and WKNO will co-host a debate among major candidates Tuesday, Aug. 15.
The debate will be broadcast on WKNO/Channel 10 at 7 p.m. and livestreamed on wkno.org. In addition, the live debate will be simulcast on WKNO-FM 91.1, livestreamed at wknofm.org and on the WKNO app. It will also be livestreamed on The Daily Memphian.
The Daily Memphian and WKNO invited eight mayoral candidates based on criteria that included the limited polling available, financial viability and past electoral success.
The candidates invited are Floyd Bonner, Karen Camper, Frank Colvett, J.W. Gibson, Willie Herenton, Michelle McKissack, Van Turner and Paul Young.
Six of the candidates have committed. The Daily Memphian is awaiting a response from Bonner. Herenton declined to participate.
Kontji Anthony, former WMC-TV anchor, will moderate the debate alongside Eric Barnes, The Daily Memphian’s CEO.
“The debate with WKNO is part of The Daily Memphian’s extensive coverage of this critical election, including candidate profiles by our reporters, one-on-one interviews on Behind the Headlines and stories about the candidates’ positions on key issues impacting Memphis,” Barnes said.
WKNO Public Media CEO Charles McLarty said the station looks forward to hosting this important event with The Daily Memphian. McLarty added: “This is a very important election for the community.”
The debate will focus on economic and community development, crime, MLGW, public finance and more. It is the second of The Daily Memphian’s mayoral debates, following a crime-focused event in April that can be viewed at the online news site’s YouTube channel.
There will not be space for an audience to watch the debate in person.
Topics
2023 Memphis Mayor's raceSamuel Hardiman
Samuel Hardiman is an enterprise and investigative reporter who focuses on local government and politics. He began his journalism career at the Tulsa World in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he covered business and, later, K-12 education. Hardiman came to Memphis in 2018 to join the Memphis Business Journal, covering government and economic development. He then served as the Memphis Commercial Appeal’s city hall reporter and later joined The Daily Memphian in 2023. His current work focuses on Elon Musk’s xAI, regional energy needs and how Memphis and Shelby County government spend taxpayer dollars.
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