How the Biden-Trump Debate Will Play on TV (Don’t Expect Fact-Checks) - The New York Times

“My job is to be as invisible as possible,” said Chris Wallace of Fox News, the moderator of the opening matchup on Tuesday.

Chris Wallace does not hold mock debates.

Instead, the “Fox News Sunday” anchor and presidential debate moderator has been honing his questions at his weekend home on Chesapeake Bay, before he flies to Cleveland to take charge of the opening bout between Joseph R.

But the few-frills format of Tuesday’s debate — two candidates, two lecterns, one moderator — is a break from highly produced events, like virtual conventions and overloaded primary debates, that have otherwise defined the major television moments of the 2020 presidential race.

The Commission on Presidential Debates, a bipartisan nonprofit group, controls the look and feel of Tuesday’s event, which is designed to evoke a more retro era of political combat.

The Fox News anchor will also face intense scrutiny on how he handles the evening, particularly given Mr.

Wallace, who has declined outside interviews ahead of his Tuesday appearance, said during a Fox News segment on Sunday.

Wallace has regularly argued is outside the purview of a debate moderator, calling it “a step too far.”.

Wallace said in the run-up to his 2016 debate.

Unlike the conventions, executives said, the debates are intended as an unfiltered test of the candidates’ wits, stamina and ability to persuade the electorate.

“The debate is one of the rare opportunities where the public is seeing both of the presidential candidates together on the same stage, where they have a chance to not only respond to and address each other, but to speak directly to the American public,” said Caitlin Conant, the political director at CBS News.

Roughly 70 percent of Americans said the debates would not matter much to their ultimate vote, according to a poll this month by The Wall Street Journal and NBC News.

“We’ve all seen a lot of politics on TV for months and months,” said Mark Lukasiewicz, a former producer of political event coverage at NBC News

Joe Biden and President Trump are preparing for the first debate, in which Mr