Gotcha questions.
Sound bites.
Pre-planned zingers.
Softball questions.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Debates need not be moderated by news people who are interested in generating more heat than light.
Imagine a panel of debate moderators consisting of historians Joanne Freeman, Henry Louis Gates jr., Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Douglas Brinkley.
Or, imagine a panel of moderators that includes scientists Neil deGrasse Tyson and Michio Kaku; philosophers Cornell West and Martha Nussbaum; political scientists Frances Fox Piven and Brian Klass.
Or, imagine a panel of moderators that includes scientists Neil deGrasse Tyson and Michio Kaku; philosophers Cornell West and Martha Nussbaum; political scientists Frances Fox Piven and Brian Klass.
The way debates are moderated could highlight the candidate’s capacity for critical thinking… and civility.
Thanks and a tip of the hat to Wikimedia Commons for the image.
