Are debates truly informative?

Print may offer more than TV

Don’t let all the stuff on television confuse you. They want you to believe we are in the formative stages of a political campaign. That’s only partially true. Behind all the debates are networks trying to outdo each other with glamor and expensive sets and orchestrated by a need to see who can knock Humpty-Dumpty Trump off his leadership status. So far the emphasis has been on the Republican Party candidates — there are more of them to “vet.”

Now that we have a Democratic debate behind us, we should have something meaningful to help us begin to formulate our views of both the parties and the candidates. Please note the word “should” in that sentence. That is the key word to expound on my disappointment in debates and candidates of both parties.

We are still weeks away from the Iowa caucus and that might be the best we can hope for. The televised debates have been a disaster in my views. For all the money spent and publicity that went into building up a viewership, they have one major thing in common. The questioning seems not to be designed to educate you and me about the candidates’ views on particular topics, but rather intend to create controversial answers that can be used in news programs over the following few weeks. My observations may not coincide with your views, but starting questions, by referring to one of the other candidates, appears to me to be designed to pit one against another regardless of the topic. This was far too evident during the CNN sponsored Republican debate in Las Vegas. Would it be asking too much of the host or hostess, the commentator or network spokesperson, to simply suggest a topic and give each candidate a minute or two to give their ideas on the subject? Is it necessary to try to start an argument between the persons by telling one Donald Trump said “…”, then trying to get them to take a different view?

It goes without saying these debates in cities like Las Vegas cost millions of dollars. With limited advertising, they are probably as much a liability as a money making program like a professional football game. The “providing a public service” theme, however, gets lost in the lack of educational value and the fact that you can see the main portions — those that really stand out for controversial content — dozens of times in the following week or even weeks. And, that is true for either of the two political parties and the choice of major news programs on all networks.

Most people probably assume my political affiliation rests with the Republican Party, but my actual position would be more toward the Independent category, so I have a strong interest in Senator Sanders’ views. I must confess some of his views are not consistent where economics are concerned, but my interest in his voting record started several years ago when I learned he was elected as an Independent but chose to caucus with the Democratic Party. Expecting to give everyone a free college education just doesn’t seem reasonable to me.

There was a Letter to the Editor recently (editorial page, NWA Democrat Gazette, Dec. 14, 2015) that promoted Ted Cruz as “the answer for Washington.” The writer of the letter, Donna Hutchinson of Bella Vista, offered sound reasoning for her choice. Not only did she list the major issues facing our na- tion and making it difficult to “stay on topic” when watching a debate, she offered her primary topic — changing Washington. Hopefully you saw the letter (it was in the NWA Letters section) and gained something from reading her views. At this point in the debate process, letters such as hers are more valuable to me than all the comments made by several dozen news analysts who try to evaluate the debate and the debaters. I’m tired of them trying to tell me who “won.”

Maybe we are doing a disservice to the print media with too much dependence on television news, talk shows and social media. So plain ordinary views by respected people who are not paid to create controversy is a refreshing change in my book. Maybe we need more of it and need to promote written media from someone we know. Ms. Hutchinson was a state representative for our area at one time and gained my respect for her work there.

••• Editor’s note: Leo Lynch is an award-winning columnist. He is a native of Benton County has deep roots in northwest Arkansas. He is a retired industrial engineer and former Justice of the Peace. He can be contacted at prtnews@nwadg.com.