In preparing election debate offerings for the public, the news departments of six local television stations in New York State--the ABC, NBC, and CBS affiliates in Syracuse, the CBS and ABC affiliates in Buffalo, and the ABC affiliate in Rochester--were often more concerned with format decisions, hinging on "what will fit" within a…

All of the television camera shots in the three Ford/Carter presidential debates were studied according to type, frequency, and duration to determine whether the images presented by the camera could have influenced the audience's perception of the candidates. According to the debate rules, each candidate was allowed three minutes to answer a…