What To Know
- MS NOW will air a two-hour special featuring a sit-down interview with Barack Obama to celebrate the opening of the Obama Presidential Center.
- The special will include conversations with Michelle Obama, Valerie Jarrett, and others involved in the project.
- The Obama Presidential Center will serve as a museum, library, and community hub on Chicago’s South Side.
MS NOW is marking the opening of the new Obama Presidential Center with a special sit-down interview with the former president.
According to Deadline, the network will air a two-hour special at 9 pm ET on Friday (June 19) titled Hope Comes Home: Inside the Obama Presidential Center, featuring MS NOW Senior Contributing Editor Michele Norris’ sit-down interview with Barack Obama.
The special will also include a chat with former first lady Michelle Obama, a tour of the center with Valerie Jarrett, CEO of the Obama Foundation, as well as conversations with those who worked on the project.
Jacob Soboroff and Nnamdi Egwuonwu will report from the center, which is located in Jackson Park in Chicago, on Thursday (June 18) for the grand opening ceremony. Al Sharpton, Jonathan Capehart, and Claire McCaskill will also be on hand to provide analysis and coverage from Chicago.
The Barack Obama Presidential Center began construction in 2021 and will officially open its doors to the public on June 19. The center, located on the South Side of Chicago, will feature a museum, library, community and conference facilities, and house the nonprofit Obama Foundation.
Speaking to Today last month, Obama said, “The goal for me has been to create something that’s a living monument, not to me, but to this idea of American citizenship. And if we can achieve that, I’ll feel pretty good, and I think people will really enjoy being there.”
The former president described the center as a space where “communities can come together to meet, to learn, to work with each other around projects that they care about.”
This isn’t the first sit-down interview from the Obama Presidential Center, however. In May, Obama spoke with Stephen Colbert from the venue for one of the last episodes of The Late Show. During the chat, Obama shared his thoughts on those who say Colbert should run for president.
“Well, you certainly have the look. You have the hair,” Obama quipped before saying Colbert wouldn’t be the worst choice. “The bar has changed. Put it this way: I think you could perform significantly better than some folks that we’ve seen. I have great confidence in that.”