Why battle without blood?
Debate overhyped and under-delivered — and there are two more rounds to come
It feels like the aftermath of that leaders’ debate went on all week, didn’t it? These things are often a bit of a letdownbecause they’ve been builtupfor so long the anticipation is often greater than the event itself.
At one point, one million viewers in total tuned into that TV1 debate.
I’m not surehowlong they stayed watching for, but 1.1 million people giving it a crack is not bad at all. It’s adrop from last time roundwhen
1.3 million tuned in in 2017, but it’s still adecent amount of eyeballs.
Andthere’smore tocomeof course, another couple of debates over the next couple of weeks.
But what’s interesting ishowthe leaders themselves perceive these things.
Fromour point of view, as viewers, weget to see howprepped and polished they are, we get to see the cogs whirring as the leaders try to answer questions, while keeping inmind all the instructions from their respective media trainers.
Jacinda Ardern’s instruction was clearly to keep calm and carry on.
Judith Collinsmayhave had the sameinstruction but appeared to ditch that halfway through as she sprang to life, clearly deciding to just be herself.
But Ardern said that she believes debates are not bloodsports. Which gotmethinking. Aren’t they?
Imean, I knowwe’re not literally seeing blood, but surely adebate is a robust exchange of ideas tossed back and forward in a bid to get your argument to the front. That’swhy debates have winners and losers.
Although I note Labour’s leader doesn’t think of them thatway either. Nowinners or losers in their world, just adiscussion around
I know we’re not literally seeing blood, but surely a debate is a robust exchange
of ideas tossed back and forward.
ideas. Well, that’s a speech not a debate.
Mini monologues are not debates. Adebate is an argument. Collins appeared to get that as she cameout of it not only agreeing there’s a winner and a loser but declaring that shewas in fact the winner.
Andisn’t thatwhywetune in? For the argy bargy?
Isn’t thatwhythere’s somuch hype around it? Isn’t thatwhy people are paid to analyse the bejeesus out of it the next day?
Isn’t thatwhyadvertisers signup to be part of it? Whyleaders spend hours and hours and days prepping for it?
It certainly needs to bemorethan just awafflefest.
Collins says she’ll be bringing her sass to the next one.
That could be a liability if she goes crazy on the sass, shemaybe accused of being too aggressive.
But it certainly gives voters and viewers an incentive to tune into the next one.