On Wednesday August 23, the first Republican Presidential debate since March 2016 will take place. The debate will be covered live on Fox News. The two-hour event will start at 9 p.m. (ET) from Milwaukee. Fox News personalities Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum will be the moderators. In the past, the pair have co-hosted several other recently televised political events including elections and State of the Union addresses.

The cable network will kick-off their coverage at 8 p.m. (ET) with a live 30-minute telecast of Jesse Watters Primetime. At 8:30 p.m. will be Countdown to the Debate hosted by Dana Perino and Bill Hammer. A special one-hour post-debate of Hannity will follow at 11 p.m.

Earlier this month, Fox News generated a backlash from right-wing supporters. The cable network had announced restrictions to non-affiliated media outlets, of no more than three minutes of debate excerpts over the following week. Fox News has threatened legal action if necessary. While there are accusations of censorship, the cable network had the same policy in 2016 without any controversy.

For candidates to qualify for the first debate, the Republican National Committee (RNC) put out a list of criteria. These were:

· Candidates needed 40,000 unique donors with a minimum of 200 unique donors in at least 20 states and/or territories.

· Candidates are required to poll at least 1% in three independent polls or two national polls and one independent poll from two of four early voting states (Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina).

· Candidates are required to sign a loyalty pledge in support of the eventual Republican Presidential candidate.

Debate Participants: At present, the following candidates have qualified to appear in the first Republican debate; Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Tim Scott, Vivek Ramaswamy, Chris Christie and Doug Burghum. Those candidates unlikely to qualify are; Francis Suarez, Perry Johnson and Larry Elder. It has yet to be determined whether Asa Hutchinson or Will Hurd may or may not qualify. The qualification deadline is August 21.

All qualified candidates are expected to be appearing on stage with the possible exception of Donald Trump. The former President has intimated he will not be a participant and has yet to commit to the event. Since leaving the Presidency, Trump has been unhappy with the coverage he has been receiving from Fox News and has criticized Fox owner Rupert Murdoch.

Nonetheless, Fox News is hopeful the former President will show up. Despite an unprecedented four indictments and 91 criminal charges, Trump continues to be the Republican frontrunner, by a wide margin. Earlier this month, Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott and network president Jay Wallace had dinner with Trump at his Bedminster, New Jersey Golf Club in hopes of persuading him. After the dinner, Trump reportedly said that Fox News, "Is worried about ratings without him there." Also, a number of on-air Fox News personalities and RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel have been trying to coax Trump to participate.

CNN’s Alayna Treene reports Trump is unlikely to attend citing sources that he has not done any pre-debate prepping. In addition, Trump may be looking for ways to compete with the debate including being interviewed by former Fox News personality Tucker Carlson. Trump also has no interest in signing the required loyalty pledge. On the other hand, some believe it will be hard for Trump to bypass the large platform the first Republican debate provides.

The second Republican Presidential debate will air on the Fox Business Network and is scheduled for September 27. The debate will be located at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute in Simi Valley, California.

2015-16 Republican Debates: All twelve Republican Presidential debates in 2015-16 (including one each on ABC and CBS) averaged over 11 million viewers, a lofty number in today’s fragmented video landscape. Also, the first four debates had set viewing records on four different cable networks. In this era of cord cutting and audience fragmentation streaming it is not likely that will happen again. (Although streaming, which was a nascent medium eight years ago, will provide a boost.)

The first debate on August 5, 2015 aired on Fox News and averaged 23.9 million viewers. It is the most watched presidential primary debate of all-time as well as record audience for Fox News. (The previous record had been 11.8 million during the 2012 Presidential election.) The moderators were Chris Wallace, Megyn Kelly and Bret Baier.

Despite the ten Presidential aspirants on stage, Trump had dominated the debate. Trump took issue with the hard line of questioning from Megyn Kelly, afterwards he told CNN’s Don Lemon that, "You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever. In my opinion, she was off base." In January 2016 when Kelly was once again a debate moderator for the network, Trump, at the last minute, boycotted the event, saying, “Let’s see how they do with the ratings”. That debate averaged 12.5 million viewers.

The next Republican debate was scheduled for September 15, 2015 on CNN. The live three-hour event averaged 23.1 million viewers, making it the most watched program on CNN. (The previous high had been 16.8 million from a NAFTA FTA debate between Al Gore and H. Ross Perot on a telecast of Larry King Live in November 1993.) Jake Tapper, Dana Bash and Hugh Hewitt were the moderators. The largest takeaway of that debate was Carly Fiorina’s stoic response to Trump after he told Rolling Stone magazine “Look at that face! Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?"

The third Republican debate was October 28, 2015 on CNBC and averaged a network high 14 million viewers. The debate was moderated by Becky Quick, Carl Quintanilla and John Harwood. Several candidates took umbrage at the questioning. This included John Harwood who asked Trump if he was running a “comic book version” of a campaign.

Two weeks later Fox Business Network hosted their first ever Republican debate and set a record for the network with 13.5 million viewers. The moderators were Maria Bartiromo, Neil Cavuto and Gerald Baker.

Advertisers: Even with his legal woes, any debate with Donald Trump will fuel greater interest, stronger ratings and higher ad revenue. Although in a polarizing political climate, marketers have been walking a bipartisan tightrope hoping not to alienate any consumers.

Among the prominent brands that have been caught in the culture wars crossfire include Anheuser Busch-InBev. Earlier this year, AB-InBev had used transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, in a Bud Light contest on Instagram leading to a boycott. Additionally, Disney has been called a “woke corporation” by Republican candidate Ron DeSantis for promoting sexual content and defending their LGBQT+ employees. Other marketers embroiled in a political backlash this year include Target TGT , M&M’s among others.

A recent report from Engagement Labs called “Brand Marketing Amid Political Polarization” found 23% of major brands are polarized between Republicans and Democrats. Steven M. Brown, president of Engagement Labs says, “In today's consumer landscape, understanding the impact of political polarization on consumer conversations is paramount for Fortune 500 brands. Our report delivers crucial insights for brands and marketers regarding the key differences in the conversations between political affiliation for major brands. This will empower them to navigate this complex environment and make more informed decisions. Ultimately, we want to equip brands with the data and knowledge they need to better understand their consumers and build authentic connections with diverse audiences that drive success in an ever-changing world.”

Among the brands with strong sentiment among Republicans include, Hobby Lobby, which has been associated with several conservative causes as well as Red Lobster, Swiffer, Jif Peanut Butter and Fox News. Also, Holiday Inn IHG and Olive Garden resonate more with Republicans. On January 6, CNN’s Anderson Cooper mentioned both brands as possibly having served some of the insurrectionists. For Democrats, sentiment is stronger with Pfizer PFE and Moderna, both having developed COVID-19 vaccines, as well as DiGiorno and Vanguard. Brands with bipartisan appeal include Coca-Cola KO , Lay’s Chips, Chipotle, Chevrolet and Gucci.