A Democratic presidential debate in either Raleigh or Charlotte seemed to be taking shape Thursday, after Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton agreed to a televised faceoff with her rival, Barack Obama, a week before North Carolina's primary May 6.

"CBS has offered to host a debate, and I've accepted the debate for April 27," Clinton said in a telephone conference with North Carolina reporters.

But Obama, who had previously agreed to an earlier North Carolina debate, did not immediately sign off on the new date.

"We had proposed a debate in North Carolina before the 22nd of April," said Obama spokesman Dan Leistikow. "Apparently, the Clinton folks vetoed that. We haven't made a decision whether the later date fits into our schedule."

Clinton also announced that she would begin an unusual statewide TV advertising campaign in which she would answer questions submitted in advance by Tar Heel voters.

"I want to be as accessible to the people of North Carolina as possible," Clinton said.

The proposed 90-minute debate would be at 8 p.m after the newsmagazine program "60 Minutes." It would be sponsored by CBS and the N.C. Democratic Party and moderated by CBS anchor Katie Couric and CBS correspondent Bob Schieffer.

Jerry Meek, the state Democratic chairman, said two debate sites are being weighed: N.C. State University in Raleigh and the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center in Charlotte.

"I think it will be great," Meek said. "It's clear that North Carolina is going to be a very critical state for both campaigns."

Obama had initially agreed to a North Carolina debate April 19, but the Clinton campaign objected to it because it was a Jewish holiday.

North Carolina has twice been the site of presidential debates, both at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem. The first was in 1988 between the elder George Bush and Michael Dukakis, and the second was in 2000 between George W. Bush and Al Gore.

Obama began his advertising campaign in North Carolina a week ago.

The Clinton ad "North Carolina Ask Me" will feature the New York senator fielding a question submitted by voters.

"Hi, if you are looking for a typical political commercial, switch the channel," Clinton says in the first ad, which is scheduled to air today. "This isn't a typical election, and these are not typical times."

"The economy is reeling," she says, "and as I talk with people across North Carolina, I hear about the crushing cost of health care from Winston-Salem to Fayetteville."

Clinton invites North Carolinians to log on to her new campaign Web site, www.NCAskMe.com, to offer questions for her to answer.

Steven H. Greene, a political science professor at N.C. State University, said the Clinton ad was an innovative attempt to shake up a race in which polls show her trailing Obama.

"I think it's a smart campaign -- more interactive, more down to earth," Greene said. "It plays to her strengths on policy and specifics."

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