1. FIRST DEMOCRATIC DEBATE ANNOUNCES MODERATORS: NBC News has announced Savannah Guthrie, Lester Holt, Chuck Todd, José Díaz-Balart, and Rachel Maddow will be the moderators of the first debate of the Democratic presidential primary. The debate will take place June 26-27 in Miami and will air on NBC, Telemundo, and MSNBC. The New York Times: “With 10 candidates appearing each night, the debate is expected to be crucial in shaping voters’ early perceptions of the field. The inclusion of Ms. Maddow—MSNBC’s biggest star and, save for Sean Hannity of Fox News, the top-rated pundit on cable news—is a wild card of sorts. Her nightly show is a required stop for Democratic presidential contenders, and she is a widely revered figure on the left. But opinion journalists are rarely chosen to interrogate candidates in the formal setting of a debate stage. And network partisanship has proved a thorny issue early in the campaign, after Democratic leaders barred Fox News from hosting any of the party’s debates, calling the channel biased.”
2. OSCARS MOVE BACK TO LATE FEBRUARY IN 2021 AND 2022: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the Oscars will take place February 28 in 2021 and February 27 in 2022. The awards will move back to late February after the 92nd ceremony takes place on February 9, 2020. The Hollywood Reporter: “A press release from the Academy and ABC stated that the timing of the 2022 Olympics, the Super Bowl, and national holidays will keep the Oscars' 2021 and 2022 dates on the last Sunday in February. Dates for future years will continue to be evaluated. The Academy's announcement also included key dates for this year's Oscars season.”
3. ‘GAME OF THRONES’ SLATED FOR COMIC-CON RETURN: Game of Thrones has skipped San Diego Comic-Con in recent years, but despite a divisive final season, the HBO fantasy series is expected to return to the event in July. Deadline: “The S.D.C.C. presence of executive producers and showrunners David Benioff and D.B Weiss does not seem likely, but George R.R. Martin, on whose books GoT was based, is anticipated to appear in one form or another. … HBO did not respond to requests for comment on S.D.C.C. from Deadline. If all goes to plan, 2019 will mark the first time Thrones has been back at Comic-Con since 2017.”
