The Democratic National Convention kicked off in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Monday evening with a virtual event centered around unity.

On a special episode of Inside the Issues, Alex Cohen was joined by Spectrum News 1’s Itay Hod and Christina Bellantoni, a journalism professor and director of the USC Annenberg Media Center, to discuss the highlights of the first night.

There were speeches by Sen. Bernie Sanders, Republicans such as Meg Whitman, and former first lady Michelle Obama. Many of the speakers referenced the COVID-19 pandemic and the United States Postal Service.

Bellantoni described the event as “intimate” and said it felt different than previous conventions. 

“Conventions are actually geared for the television audience,” said Bellantoni. “They’re thinking about the  millions of people who are tuning in to hear what a party stands for and a word, if I had to choose one, would be ‘urgency.’ You got that sense that this is a matter of great peril, is how a lot of people kind of framed the moment the country is in, without taking too many direct hits at President Trump.”

Let Inside the Issues know your thoughts and watch Monday through Friday at 8 and 11 p.m. on Spectrum News 1.