How to Watch the Trump-Harris Presidential Debate (Without Blocked Disney Channels)

in Disney, Television

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in front of the Disney+ logo.

Credit: Inside the Magic

The presidential election debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris is airing tonight via Disney, but if you’re a DirecTV customer, you won’t be able to watch it.

Multiple hands point towards the Disney+ logo on the left side of the image, while a single hand in a business suit points towards the DirecTV logo on the right side, against a gray background. This represents the ongoing feud between the two companies, and how it is frustrating their customers.
Credit: Inside the Magic

That is because DirecTV and The Walt Disney Company are currently in a fight over channel packages, which escalated to the point that the Mouse House let its carriage deal with the pay-TV giant lapse. That means that numerous Disney-owned channels, like FX, Disney Junior, and ESPN, have all gone cark on DirecTV customers who paid to have them. Unsurprisingly, people are pretty furious about it.

Related: UPDATE: DirecTV Will Pay for Missing Disney and ESPN Channels, Sign up Before Tomorrow

While much of the attention about the DirecTV-Disney debacle has been over the loss of ESPN for millions of TV viewers just as NFL season is about to begin, there is an even more immediate (and arguably more important) problem.

The presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and sitting Vice President Kamala Harris will be broadcast by ABC News tonight, one of the numerous channels missing from satellite customers TV rights now.

An edited image shows a cartoon character, Mickey Mouse, covering its mouth with both hands. On the left of Mickey is Donald Trump, smiling, and on the right is Kamala Harris, also smiling. They are in front of an American flag background.
Credit: Inside the Magic

It is fair to say that the 2024 presidential election is one of the more contentious and charged in recent memory, which makes the first public standoff between Trump and Harris a hugely important event to be handled by Disney. If millions of American voters are blocked from watching it at home, it could be a very big deal.

Related: Mickey Mouse, Football, and Bad Faith: DirecTV Officially Brings Government Action Against Disney

But while the debate is being hosted by ABC, that does not mean it is the only place to watch it. There are multiple options to watch the debate, which includes:

The presidential debate will be broadcast on Tuesday, September 10, at 9:00 p.m. EDT. World News Tonight anchor and managing editor David Muir and ABC News Live Prime anchor Linsey Davis will moderate.

A modern TV mounted on a white wall displaying the DirecTV logo. Below the TV, a wooden shelf holds two white vases and a soundbar. To the right, an illustration of Mickey Mouse is shown standing and facing left. The overall setting is minimalistic and clean.
Credit: Inside the Magic

The conflict between Disney and DirecTV will almost certainly not be finished by the time the debate rolls around, but that doesn’t mean that voters don’t have options for how to watch it. Some things (like elections) are a bit more important than you get to decide what overstuffed channel packages you pay for.

How will you watch the presidential debate?

View Comments (2)