There are a few different options for watching U.S. House of Representatives hearings depending on whether you want to view them live or recorded. The main options are C-SPAN, committee websites, and digital platforms like YouTube.
Watching Live House Hearings
C-SPAN is the best option if you want to watch House hearings live as they happen. C-SPAN is a private, non-profit organization that provides gavel-to-gavel coverage of proceedings in the House and Senate. There are three C-SPAN TV channels that cover different government activities:
- C-SPAN: Regular House and Senate proceedings and hearings
- C-SPAN 2: Additional congressional hearings and government events
- C-SPAN 3: Government events and hearings on a wider variety of topics
All three C-SPAN channels are available on most cable and satellite providers. You can also watch them through the C-SPAN website or mobile app without needing a cable subscription. Just visit c-span.org and click on the “Watch Live” tab at the top.
In addition to C-SPAN’s coverage, some House committees provide live streams of their hearings on their own websites. For example, the House Oversight and Reform Committee often streams their high-profile hearings on their website. House Intelligence also sometimes broadcasts hearings on their website. Check the website of the specific committee holding the hearing you want to watch.
Individual House members will also sometimes stream hearings they chair through platforms like YouTube. Subscribing to a relevant committee or member’s YouTube page is a good way to get notifications when they go live.
Watching Recordings of House Hearings
If you can’t watch live, archived videos of most House hearings are available on the committee websites and YouTube channels. Here are some options:
- Committee websites – Most House committees upload archived videos of their hearings to their websites within 1-2 days. Just navigate to the committee’s website and look for a tab like “Hearings” or “Events.”
- C-SPAN – C-SPAN has an extensive video library of past House and Senate proceedings searchable by date, committee, speaker, and topic. Their coverage dates back to 1987. You can find the video library at c-span.org/search.
- YouTube – Many House committees maintain YouTube channels where they post hearing videos. For example, you can finds hours of past hearings from committees like Energy & Commerce, Judiciary, Ways & Means, and others on YouTube.
- Congress.gov – On Congress.gov, you can look up information on specific hearings, get a list of all hearings on a certain topic, and sometimes find linked videos. Hearing listings on Congress.gov will note “Video” if footage is available and provide a link.
Individual representatives and witnesses will also frequently post excerpts or highlights from hearings on their own YouTube channels. While not complete footage, this can provide helpful video snippets on specific topics.
Notable and High-Profile Hearings
While most House hearings focus on policy issues and proposed legislation, some garner national public attention, especially related to investigations. Here are some of the most notable publicized House hearings from recent history that you can still view recordings of today:
Hearing | Committee | Date |
---|---|---|
Michael Cohen testimony on Trump | Oversight and Reform | February 27, 2019 |
Mueller report hearing with Robert Mueller | Judiciary, Intelligence | July 24, 2019 |
Impeachment hearings on Trump-Ukraine | Intelligence, Judiciary | November 13-22, 2019 |
Investigation of GameStop stock volatility | Financial Services | February 18, 2021 |
Law enforcement testimony on January 6 Capitol attack | Oversight and Reform | July 27, 2021 |
Big Tech CEOs antitrust hearing | Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee | July 29, 2020 |
Video and transcripts from all these high-profile hearings can be found through C-SPAN, committee websites, and YouTube. They represent major public events in modern Congressional history.
Searching for Hearings on Specific Topics
You can use a few strategies to find House hearings focused on specific policy topics you’re interested in:
- Use the committee search on House.gov – You can search or browse upcoming and past hearings by committee.
- Search Congress.gov – Use keyword searches under the “Congressional Hearings” section.
- Search C-SPAN – Look through C-SPAN’s video library organized by topic area.
- Browse committee YouTube channels – Scan video playlists related to your topic.
- Google it – Search Google for relevant terms plus “House hearing.”
Some hot topic policy areas with related House hearings in recent Congresses include healthcare, immigration, climate change, gun regulation, infrastructure, big tech regulation, and COVID-19 oversight.
How to Watch House Hearings Internationally
Watching U.S. House hearings outside the United States requires a few extra steps. Here are some options if you’re abroad and want to view live or recorded hearings:
- Use a VPN service – Connect to a U.S.-based server to access region-restricted content.
- Check third party YouTube channels – Some non-official channels repost hearing footage without restrictions.
- Follow international C-SPAN feeds – If available in your country, they may cover select major hearings.
- Check committees’ international pages – Some committees provide international live stream links.
While most official House video streams are restricted, with a little searching you can usually find options for accessing hearings from anywhere in the world.
How to Understand and Get the Most from Watching Hearings
Here are some tips to understand the context and get the most substantive information from viewing House hearings:
- Read witness testimony and bios – This provides valuable background before the questioning.
- Review the committee memorandum – This lays out the goals and topics to be covered.
- Watch/read committee member questions – The lines of inquiry are revealing about different positions.
- Focus on the Q&A – Questioning often provides the key substantive information.
- Look for debate between parties – Cross-examination often occurs along party lines.
- Pay attention to tone and body language – This can reveal true feelings behind statements.
- Distinguish political theater from facts – Grandstanding happens but look for substantive exchanges.
- Consult fact-checkers – They can identify false claims that arise during testimony.
- Consider expert analysis – Post-hearing commentary assesses significance and implications.
Getting context via preparatory research, focusing on the questioning, and consulting post-hearing expertise will optimize your understanding gained from watching House hearings.
Conclusion
House hearings provide a window into lawmaking and investigations on Capitol Hill. While not always scintillating, they enable public monitoring of representatives and access to expert testimony on policy matters. With C-SPAN, committee websites, YouTube, and other resources, most hearings are readily available to watch live or via recording. Finding and understanding relevant hearings simply requires identifying key committees and members, getting background on the topics, and paying close attention to the questions asked and facts uncovered. Watching House hearings takes some effort but enables voters, journalists, researchers, and anyone interested to have primary evidence of Congress at work.