From the Rose Law Group Growlery/By Phil Riske, managing editor
“Indeed, organizing atheists has been compared to herding cats, because they tend to think independently and will not conform to authority.” ~ Richard Dawson, scientist and atheist
It’s easy to sit back and be a critic of last night’s GOP presidential debate. So, here I go.
Not in American history have there ever been presidential debates that reuired 13 podiums and a second-string contest with four or five more candidates.
Also, there has never been such a debate that went for three hours.
With that many candidates fractured TV formats, it’s nearly impossible to deposit useful information with the voting public, let alone keeping people awake for three hours, all allow for more commercials.
Equally troubling are the agendas of the host networks.
In the first debate Fox News, rather than beginning with important issues, the anchor panel purposely ignited ad hominem fire between the candidates and between Donald Trump and Megyn Kelly.
Last night, CNN followed suit, pitting Trump and Fiorina over personal looks, then Trump called her “beautiful,” but turned on Sen. Paul’s face.
(I can’t deny there are voters who choose someone based on other than their positions on issues or vision for the country. It was said the sweat on Richard Nixon’s upper lip cost him lots of votes when he debated JFK. And someone mentioned on TV this morning the sweat on Gov. Walker’s upper lip and his bald spot.
At the same time, I also can’t deny the debates have value for those who really tuned in to hear discussions about issues, and I would hope they were responsible for the record viewership.)
While Fox News continues to promote and defend Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, other parts of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire and Murdoch himself have criticized the candidate in what appears to be an internal proxy war, Media Matters reported.
That’s sure what we need to have to ensure the voting public of fairness in coverage of the race.
Like Fox, CNN manipulated its format last night, mainly with the tactic of allowing any candidate who received criticism from another a chance to strike back, knowing all the time Trump would get the most fire. (Not to mention placing Trump in the middle of the stage, which is the so-called “power seat.”
Here are the results of total airtime for each candidate last night to make my point.
Trump 17:54
Bush 14:19
Fiorina 11:48
Carson 11:22
Christie 11:03
Rubio 10:11
Paul 9:25
Cruz 9:15
Kasich 8:06
Huckabee: 8:05
Walker 7:10
While CNN’s questioners were caught up in their own glory, they really missed the boat on a question that could have made or thwarted the campaign of Dr. Ben Carson, a retired pediatric neurosurgeon—the defunding of Planned Parenthood. Who better than a physician who has done much medical research to respond to the issue? He never got the question.
Don’t misunderstand, this column is not pro or con any of the candidates; it is to encourage future debates, Republican or Democrat, to answer the question: Where’s the beef? Not to create beefs purely for ratings.
There are six months before the first primary elections, yet the campaigns are already wearing thin on the public, which if the decorum and the media don’t shape up, will become political atheists.
