Lakeland PBS’ Debate Night 2024 premieres October 7th

BEMIDJI – Lakeland PBS will once again produce and broadcast Debate Night, a series of live local debates featuring candidates for the Minnesota House of Representatives in eight different districts.

Lakeland PBS has partnered with The Bemidji Pioneer, The Brainerd Dispatch, Park Rapids Enterprise and KAXE Northern Community Radio to create a panel that understands the pulse of our communities and what residents want to know.

“As Election Day approaches, information about your candidates is important,” a press release said. “Once elected, these representatives will introduce bills and resolutions, offer amendments and serve on committees that will initiate a change in the policy and direction of our government.”

Debate Night viewers will learn about candidates’ viewpoints and positions on important issues through questions submitted by community members and developed by a distinguished panel of local journalists and news officials, the release explained.

“We live in a world where information is always at our fingertips, but that doesn’t mean all information is always true or reliable. “So we’ve found that our community really values ​​these (Debate Nights) because they can get involved with their questions and get a more authentic look at who they might vote for,” said Jeff Hanks, CEO of Lakeland PBS , in the press release.

The schedule for Debate Night 2024 is as follows:

Live from the Lakeland PBS Bemidji Studio:

On Monday, October 7th:

• 7:00 p.m. – House District 2A, Bidal Duran vs. Reed Olson
• 8 p.m. – House District 2B, Rep. Matt Bliss vs. Michael Reyes

On Tuesday, October 8th:

• 7 p.m. – House District 5A, Rep. Krista Knudsen vs. Brian Hobson
• 8 p.m. – House District 7A, Rep. Spencer Igo vs. Aron Schnaser

Live from the Lakeland PBS Brainerd Studio:

On Thursday, October 10th:

• 7 p.m. – House District 5B, Rep. Mike Wiener vs. Gregg Hendrickson
• 8 p.m. – House District 6A, Rep. Ben Davis vs. Earl Butenhoff

On Friday, October 11th:

• 7 p.m. – House District 6B, Rep. Josh Heintzeman vs. Emily LeClaire vs. Troy Kenneth Scheffler
• 8 p.m. – House District 10A, Rep. Ron Kresha vs. Julia Samsal Hipp

Community members can watch Debate Night 2024 by tuning in to the Lakeland Prime Channel, watching the Lakeland PBS live stream via the PBS app or lptv.org, or watching on-demand the next day via the PBS app, lptv.org or Lakeland PBS YouTube channel.

“We have been producing Debate Night since 2000 and it is a production we are proud to offer the community every election cycle,” Hanks said in the press release. “It is such an important resource for community members to be able to hear firsthand from their candidates in a live forum like this.”