10 election-related documentaries, series and specials to watch

A group of teenage girls at an academic competition

By Maira GarciaTelevision Editor

Oct. 29, 2024 3 AM PT

We’re in the final stretch before election day, and social media has been flooded with clips of rallies held by Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump, as well as the interviews they’ve given in recent days on TV and with podcast hosts like Joe Rogan and Alex Cooper.

The media blitz by the two presidential candidates has been strategic as they look to saturate feeds with their platforms and messages in an attempt to sway and turn out voters. But are they working? CNN’s chief media analyst Brian Stelter wrote on Monday that video clippers have become “some of the most powerful people in this year’s election cycle.” Although they were a force in the 2016 and 2020 elections, the clippers have flooded social media in a way that feels more pronounced, probably because so many more of us are consuming media online. Plus, the speed in which they are produced makes them part of the cultural conversation almost instantaneously.

Case in point: The clip circulating of comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who made disparaging comments about Puerto Rico, calling it “a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean.” The Trump campaign has since distanced itself from his comments, but the Harris campaign was able to capitalize on the outcry, having just released an economic plan to help Puerto Rico alongside a video of Harris explaining it. The video was shared on the social media channels of Puerto Rican entertainers, including Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin, who each have millions of followers.

Clips are one part of the information toolbox, and there’s no denying their force. But they can often skew in one direction or lack context because of the nature of social media platforms, where brevity is prized. Polling so far indicates that the presidential race will be very tight, and if you’re looking to get election information with more depth, there’s lots of programming that can help you discern the facts, or at least help you debate the moment we’re in.

Here’s a guide to documentaries, specials and series that will help you learn more about the candidates, have a discussion with kids about the election or find humor in the chaos.

Two PBS documentaries about the candidates

“Frontline” documentary “The Choice 2024: Harris vs. Trump” takes a look at both candidates by speaking to variety of sources.

(Left to right: Justin Sullivan/Pool via Reuters; Brendan Smialowski for AFP/Getty Images)

Since 1988, the team behind PBS’ “Frontline” series has created a documentary about the presidential candidates called “The Choice,” and this year was no different. But it took a turn that the directors — like just about everyone else — didn’t expect: President Biden dropped out of the race. Filmmakers Michael Kirk and Mike Wiser spoke to The Times last month about their eleventh-hour rush to produce a film that highlighted Harris alongside Trump instead. “What would have taken us four or five months we did in about nine weeks,” Kirk said.

The result is “The Choice 2024: Harris vs. Trump,” a two-hour documentary available to stream now on PBS. It takes a look at both candidates by speaking to their friends and advisors, as well as critics, writers and political insiders. As a companion, the filmmakers also created a documentary about the vice presidential candidates, “The VP Choice: Vance vs. Walz,” which similarly tells the stories of Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

Discuss the election (and politics) with kids

A group of teenagers in dress clothing with medals around their necks and crowded around a trophy.

Can kids predict who the next president will be? Over the years, Nickelodeon has come pretty darn close. The children’s programming channel is bringing back its “Kids Pick the President” special, which premiered Monday and is streaming on Nick.com, YouTube, Pluto TV and Paramount+. Since the special debuted in 1988, it’s correctly predicted the winner of the U.S. presidential election every year except 2004 and 2016. In this year’s poll, Harris came out on top with 52% of the vote, and Trump with 48%.

If you’re an elder millennial like myself, you’ll remember Linda Ellerbee as host of these specials, where she spoke to kids about the issues that were important to them. What made them so great is how she took their responses seriously and provided perspectives from a variety of backgrounds and political perspectives. Similarly, the 2024 special highlights tweens and teens from across the political spectrum, with Nate Burleson, co-host of “CBS Mornings” and “The NFL Today,” guiding the conversation alongside his daughter, Mia.

The top issue in the special was about the economy — perhaps a reflection of how the cost of living dominates family conversations. But more devastating was the discussion of school shootings and mental health, with one child saying, “Every day I’m at school I’m thinking, ‘What if a shooting happens right now?’” (Frankly, the topic merits its own special.) Seeing kids discuss school safety and other issues with such thoughtfulness is a reminder that it’s worthwhile for adults to listen to them.

Those everyday experiences highlight how our formative years are crucial to understanding the American political process and how we form our views, which is highlighted in PBS’ four-part docuseries “Citizen Nation.” It follows teens and teachers from Wyoming, Nevada and Virginia as they set out to compete in the civics competition We the People, where students testify in mock congressional hearings with a panel of judges. But the competition is just one part of the story, as we get to learn the backgrounds of the teachers, the students and their families and how they influence — or don’t, in some cases — their views. The finale airs on PBS stations on Tuesday and is available to stream in full on PBS.org and the PBS app. The docuseries is reminiscent of “Boys State,” which was on the Oscar documentary shortlist in 2021, and the more recent “Girls State,” both directed by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine and available to stream on Apple TV+. They make for great conversation starters with teenagers who are grappling with political issues and where they stand.

Laugh until election day

Tim Walz and Jon Stewart sitting at the desk in the Daily Show studio.

Satirical news programs like “The Daily Show” and “Last Week Tonight” have highlighted the ups and downs of the presidential election, while garnering laughs and skewering the candidates. John Oliver continues his deep dives into issues and topics that will affect voters on the HBO late-night series, which most recently included a look at immigration; other standouts this season include an episode on school lunch programs and another on Robert F. Kennedy Jr., that aired a couple of weeks before he dropped out of the race.

And it’s hard to believe it’s been only eight months since Stewart made his once-a-week return to Comedy Central’s late-night show, which began by highlighting the age of the candidates — particularly Biden’s — something that he was roundly criticized for. Well, now we’re here with a new Democratic presidential candidate in Harris, with Tim Walz as her running mate, who Stewart recently interviewed about the campaign. The rest of the week, the show has rotated between Jordan Klepper, Desi Lydic, Ronny Chieng, Michael Kosta and Dulcé Sloan as hosts, holding their own in interviews with politicians and experts. (Comedy Central announced Monday that Stewart will continue to host once a week through at least the end of 2025.) Klepper also leads a new special titled “Jordan Klepper Fingers The Pulse: Rally Together,” where he interviews Trump supporters. He’s joined by actor Thomas Lennon as Lt. Jim Dangle, his character from “Reno 911.”

The latest entry to the late-night scene is CNN’s “Have I Got News For You,” hosted by Roy Wood Jr., a “Daily Show” alum. It is a news quiz format that features comedians Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black as team captains who are joined by guest contestants, typically a politician or insider and a comedian — former Rep. Adam Kinzinger and Larry Wilmore were the most recently on the show. The series, which airs on Saturdays and streams on Max, is starting to find its footing: For moments like the one that found Ruffin and Wood singing TLC’s “Unpretty” after joking about an edited photo of JD Vance that made his face look slimmer, it‘s worth adding to your queue.