Seated at the head of the oblong table where he will preside over his new Comedy Central series, “The Nightly Show,” Larry Wilmore was moderating a vigorous, sometimes sincere, sometimes acerbic panel discussion about the attack on the French newspaper Charlie Hebdo.

Sally Kohn, who contributes to CNN and The Daily Beast, said that society reacted differently to mass shootings depending on who had committed them. “When white people commit crime in the United States,” she said, “nobody says, ‘Gosh, what’s wrong with white people?’ ”

Mr. Wilmore replied: “Actually, we say it. But nobody listens.”

This debate, held last Tuesday night on a newly constructed set at a Midtown Manhattan studio, was a dry run not meant for broadcast. It was seen by an audience of Comedy Central executives and “Nightly Show” writers and producers, including Jon Stewart, anchor of “The Daily Show,” who sat in the front row.

When “The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore” makes its debut after “The Daily Show” on Monday night, many more people will be watching, closely attuned to what its host says and does. These viewers will be watching for how this show distinguishes itself from its highly regarded predecessor, “The Colbert Report,” whose singularly arch M.C., Stephen Colbert, will succeed David Letterman at CBS in September.