Cable news network NewsNation will broadcast a town hall event Tuesday evening focused on the rapid evolution of technology and its sweeping implications for society, as concerns over artificial intelligence intensify. The program, scheduled for 8 p.m. EDT, will be moderated by anchor Chris Cuomo and feature a lineup of prominent figures from science, business, and culture.
Among the confirmed guests are astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, bestselling author and marketing professor Scott Galloway, and “Dirty Jobs” host Mike Rowe. The event will take place before a live studio audience in New York City, with discussions centered on artificial intelligence—what lies ahead for both users and developers, and how to gauge its global reach.
AI has increasingly embedded itself into American business, politics, and everyday life, a trend Cuomo says makes the topic ripe for deep examination. “The bosses wanted to do it, to be honest, and that’s because they have a real interest in our coverage, reflecting the pace of innovation, and there has never been a discovery as impactful to the present and future as AI,” Cuomo told The Hill.
The timing of the town hall comes amid growing unease about AI’s economic disruption. Critics point to companies like Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google as forces reshaping the labor market, with many workers fearing job losses tied to automation and machine learning. Cuomo noted that the question of who controls the regulation of major tech platforms will be a central political issue in upcoming elections, and he plans to press panelists and audience members on that very point during the event.
“There are very big political and philosophical questions about what this means and who gets to determine what happens,” he said. Cuomo pushed back against efforts to politicize AI, arguing that framing the debate strictly in terms of socialism versus capitalism misses the mark. He pointed to former President Trump’s decision to have the U.S. government take an equity stake in Intel as evidence that such labels are inadequate.
The anchor likened artificial intelligence to electricity, calling it more of a resource than a mere technology. While debates rage on Wall Street, in Washington, and globally about how to respond to AI’s expanding footprint, Cuomo said his primary goal for Tuesday night is to zero in on how the technology is reshaping ordinary Americans’ daily lives.
“The larger issues like public versus private control, and how that plays out and data centers, manufacturing, and a lot of the infrastructure to come, is less an emphasis because of where we are right now,” he explained. “The key now is to show what AI is already meaning for everyday life, for better and worse.” This focus aligns with broader political discussions, including recent pledges by Trump to expand data center power while balancing consumer cost concerns.
Cuomo has anchored a weeknight show on NewsNation—which, like The Hill, is owned by Nexstar Media Group—since 2022. He has helmed several of the network’s political town halls and been a fixture of its election night and prime-time coverage. He said technology’s impact on the economy and cost of living has become a top concern for Americans, making Tuesday’s event particularly timely.
“Journalism is not about avoiding controversy … It’s about leaning into it and helping people understand what the right information and questions are,” Cuomo said. “There are a lot of cool aspects of innovation … A lot of shocking and frankly frightening aspects of this … They all matter and we can’t hide from any of it.” The town hall also touches on broader international themes, such as threats to global communications infrastructure that could be exacerbated by AI-driven systems.
