This Wednesday is the first of three presidential debates
before the November election. If you
read the news, both candidates are claiming the debate is critical for their
election and at the same time trying to downplay expectations.
Downplaying expectations seems to be a critical piece to
debate success. Trying to get the
general population to not expect much from you in order to, ”wow” them at the
debate has proven to be an effective strategy.
It seems very backwards to me, but that is probably one of many reasons
why I am not running for president.
The debate will be televised on all major networks and seen
by millions of voters and future voters.
While many people know who they are going to vote for, many do not. The debate is a tool that puts the candidates
side by side in order for people to compare.
The first televised debate took place in 1960, but it was
not until 1976 that the debates have become a regular and critical part of the
election. The effects of the 1960 debate
and the obscure campaign laws deterred candidates and networks from sponsoring
presidential debates.
In 1960 a young and
energetic candidate from Massachusetts stole the show and won the election in
the first ever televise debate. John F.
Kennedy looked poised and comfortable when he challenged the favored Richard
Nixon to a debate. It was not only the
appearance of Kennedy, but Nixon displaying nerves and sweating which made many
people question his leadership ability.
You can understand why all future frontrunners refused to debate until
it was no longer an option in 1976.
The campaign law which required equal television time to be
given to all candidates found a loophole which made debates a possibility in
1976. The candidates were up for the
challenge, but also had little room to refuse.
While the debate in 1976 did not swing the voters in the same way as
1960, it did provide Jimmy Carter the opportunity to display his presidential
qualities versus incumbent Gerald Ford.
Sitting presidents and incumbents have used the debates to
address the public’s perception and neutralize criticisms. Future President Ronald Reagan used the
debate in 1980 to ask the American people if they were better off today than
they were four years prior. This
question helped to convince many voters to move away from President Carter. He used the debates in 1984 to show his
humorous side and make a joke out of his age, which was polling as a concern
among voters.
While the debates have proven effective, they have also gone
to the point of absurdity. Polls
following the debate measure likability, personality, persuasiveness and other
characteristics. They have fact checkers
and analysis which measure everything including the number of nouns and verbs
used by a candidate. For an example of
what they measure you can check out the site concerning the 2008 debate.
Why do you think the televised debates have become so
important in American presidential politics?
Do you think the way a candidate looks should be a reason to vote for or
against somebody? What do you think is
the best way for voters who are undecided to choose a candidate? The debates? Newspapers or news television?
Or some other way?
