The BBC’s top team will be bringing round the clock reporting and analysis of the key events to audiences in the UK, US and around the world in the lead up to election day on Tuesday 5 November.
BBC News Channel Chief Presenters in Washington DC, Sumi Somaskanda and Caitríona Perry will be leading the coverage across a range of programming, alongside the expertise of BBC North America Editor Sarah Smith, BBC North America correspondents Gary O’Donoghue, Anthony Zurcher, Nada Tawfik, Emma Vardy, John Sudworth, Ione Wells and BBC US Special Correspondent Katty Kay, among others.
BBC Verify US has recently launched to ensure voters and audiences have transparent analysis of the facts, and to provide further BBC journalism that is unbiased and trustworthy.
BBC Verify’s Ros Atkins and Merlyn Thomas will be in the US to deliver the dedicated BBC Verify US – fact-checking the claims and stories coming out of the election campaigning and debunking disinformation around major election issues including the economy, voter integrity, campaign finance, immigration, and AI.
Across the BBC News website and app there will be dynamic live coverage in text and video, on-the-ground reporting, and rich analysis from the BBC’s correspondents in the US and around the world. Our digital teams will deliver up-to-minute breaking news, clear explanation and a distinctive range of journalism that gets to the heart of the issues facing the country and the concerns of the US voters.
The US election hub will also feature poll trackers, fact-checks from BBC Verify, policy guides, InDepth articles and diverse perspectives from the Voter Voices panel, where each week we hear from US voters and go beyond political talking points to get at the nuance of what will decide how people vote.
On the night itself the BBC News Channel and BBC One will be hosting the US Election results special on Tuesday 5 November running throughout the night through breakfast time – bringing audiences across the world the key results and events as they happen. More details will be revealed soon.
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Special US election 2024 programming
Americast
The BBC’s flagship US news podcast will publish daily episodes from Monday 21 October until Friday 8 November.
In the two weeks before the election, Americast Pop Up Podcast Studio will be on the road around the US with hosts Sarah Smith, Marianna Spring, Justin Webb and Anthony Zurcher speaking to voters and analysing what’s happening. Episodes will be available on BBC News YouTube, as well as BBC Sounds.
BBC News Channel
BBC News Channel is adding extra US election programmes and series in the run up to Tuesday 5 November including:
- Path to the Presidency with Caitríona Perry, Sumi Somaskanda and Katty Kay – a new weekly series features dynamic discussions and insights about the state of the race based on expert interviews and conversations with sources. Also available as audio via The Global Story podcast and on YouTube.
- Voter Voices – a series of special segments that follow along as Sumi Somaskanda, Caitríona Perry, Helena Humphrey and Carl Nasman travel around America speaking to voters across the seven swing states that will play a pivotal role in the outcome of the election.
Question Time
Question Time will host a special episode in the US. Fiona Bruce will host a panel of politicians and experts in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania and invite members of the audience to quiz the panel on the topics that matter to them in this election.
- UK: BBC One, iPlayer at 9pm BST, Thursday 10 October
- BBC World Service at 10pm BST, Thursday 10 October
- US and worldwide via the BBC News Channel and YouTube –timings to be confirmed.
BBC News at Six and Ten
Clive Myrie will be returning to the US, a country he lived in and reported on for many years, to tell the key stories of the election. There will also be a collaboration with BBC Radio 1’s Newsbeat team to explore the generational issues that will define this election and beyond.
Newsnight
Victoria Derbyshire interviews some of the biggest names in US politics in live programmes from the heart of Washington DC.
Panorama
Panorama – Trump: A Second Chance? (working title). Panorama follows Donald Trump’s campaign for a second term as president, with exclusive access to some of his most dedicated supporters. This film charts the rollercoaster ride of the last eighteen months. From Trump’s indictment on fraud charges in April last year, two assassination attempts and the withdrawal of Joe Biden after a car crash head-to-head debate. BBC One and iPlayer, Monday 29 October.
US Election Unspun
US Election Unspun – the BBC’s US focused newsletter by Anthony Zurcher will increase to twice weekly from October 2 to deliver exclusive insights on the race for the White House and its global impact.
Further audio and podcasts
Radio 4’s Today programme will be covering the important moments and have regular reports from Justin Webb in the US.
Radio 5Live’s Matt Chorley will be covering the elections, diving into the issues that matter to the US voters and following the developments.
Why do you Hate Me USA – in her latest five-part BBC Radio 4 podcast series, Marianna Spring is investigating the social media backdrop to the US election, interrogating different online phenomena and cases of hate.
Undercover Voters USA – as part of Americast, Marianna Spring will investigate what voters in the US are being recommended in their social media feeds.
Coming Storm podcast – From BBC Radio 4, Gabriel Gatehouse goes through the looking glass in America and dives into the conspiracy theories that are shaping the US election in the second series of his hit podcast on BBC Sounds.
Every Tuesday until election day, The Global Story World Service podcast will publish a series of deep dives on America’s relationship with the world, called “America and…”. The six-episode series, hosted by Sumi Somaskanda will cover topics such as the Middle East, the war in Ukraine, or climate change. The series will also be available as visualised episodes on the BBC World Service YouTube channel and on the News Channel.
The Global News Podcast will host a special listeners’ Q&A on Friday 18 October in collaboration with The Global Story and Americast. On election night, Global News Podcast will release a special bonus episode as we call in the results.
The Live News stream on BBC Sounds will be focusing on the US election across October and November, so people can hear the latest election developments as they happen 24 hours a day.
Deborah Turness, CEO BBC News and Current Affairs: “This is a hugely consequential time in the US with the countdown to November’s election. The BBC’s trusted journalism rises above America’s polarised politics to deliver facts, not opinion. As such, we are delivering a range of special programming to bring audiences in the UK, US and around the world the best impartial reporting with breaking news, insight and analysis across BBC platforms.
“Our teams in the US will be at the heart of the campaign trail action, following every step of the contest along with journalists in London and across the globe. We’ll be reporting on the ground in key swing states to find out what really matters to US voters, and ultimately who will win the most powerful job in the world – a position that affects us all.”
