Soon, people will have the opportunity to “Meet the Press” in person.
Kristen Welker, current host of NBC’s long-running “Sunday Public Affairs Show,” will host her first live event related to the show, “Meet the Moment LIVE,” on June 29th at City Winery in New York City. At the gathering, ticketed audiences will see a conversation between Welker and Taraji P. Henson, where Welker will discuss her career as an actress and her work built around mental health advocacy.
Since 1947, “Meet the Press” has brought top newsmakers to the nation’s capital to talk about the news cycle’s most pressing issues in front of a television audience of news lovers. Since taking over the reins as host in 2023, Welker has worked to broaden the conversation. The show’s “Meet the Moment” segments tend to focus on larger issues affecting the country as a whole and rely on interviews with people from outside the Beltway. Among those who have created “moments” are Olivia Munn, Michael Phelps and Martin Luther King III, and the issues include everything from grief to infertility to sports.
“We’re always going to have big political conversations and guests who are at the center of political debates,” Welker said in a recent interview. Still, many topics affect a wide range of viewers and aren’t usually covered in the show’s traditional interviews. Concerns about things like public health are “issues that our politicians are grappling with,” she added, “and they affect our politics. They affect our culture. They affect the world we live in.”
“Meet The Press” is the latest program in the NBC News portfolio as it seeks to unlock new revenue through live events. In recent months, Willie Geist has given several long interviews on “Sunday Today” in front of a live audience, and NBC News organized a series of in-person events around “Today” last fall. The concept typically generates revenue from tickets, but can also generate revenue through advertising partnerships that weave specific branding and promotional messages throughout the event.
NBCUniversal’s news department may be taking a cue from Bravo’s news department. Every year, Bravo hosts BravoCon, a multi-day fan event that includes sponsorships, conversations and appearances by the show’s main characters.
There’s a good reason to emphasize the “Meet the Moment” segment, says David Gelles, executive producer of “Meet the Press.” “Every time we have a ‘Meet the Moment’ conversation, we never miss a Sunday on an important demonstration,” he says. “This reflects the idea that people are very interested in the conversation and feel like they’re learning.” Focus groups have revealed that “Meet the Moment” talks play a key role in bringing new viewers to Sunday’s “Press,” he says.
Additionally, Gelles said, “Press” has had success over the years by inviting guests from outside the political world onto the show, including figures like Kobe Bryant. “We’re finding new ways to approach things that have been done on the show for a long time,” he says.
Welker said he was inspired to try something new on the show after an old “Meet the Press” interview with baseball legend Yogi Berra. “He’s not a politician, but baseball is part of our politics because baseball affects all of us,” she says. The hope is that conversations with figures from outside the typical “press” coterie guest will “add an additional layer of information and understanding about really complex issues.”
“Meet the Press” has a rich history of expanding into new media territory, and under former host Chuck Todd, the show pivoted into a podcast, an MSNBC edition and even a film festival.
Approximately 400 people will be able to watch the conversation between Welker and Hanson on June 29th, which is expected to be the beginning of a long series of important exchanges. “We see this as part of the future of Meet the Press,” Gelles said.
