Survey results revealed a curious paradox: people who saw both the debates between local candidates and the presidential debates were more influenced by the local debates and perceived the local debates as more informative; however, they also saw the presidential debates as more interesting and influential. (PD)

Studied the effects of the February 20, 1980, debate involving seven Republican candidates. Results strongly suggest that watching a televised debate early in the presidential primary season can increase respondents' interest in, and knowledge about, the campaign. (PD)

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…

Argues that the influence of televised, general election, presidential debates on prospective voters' perceptions of participating candidates may be larger than previous research suggests. Finds that two sources of debate effects have gone largely undetected to date: those based on candidates' relational communication, and those which are…

This study investigated what changes in the television-personality and presidential images of the candidates would occur among first-time young voters due to the first presidential debate. Subjects, 116 18- or 19-year-old students at Purdue University, completed semantic differential forms, before and after the debate, which rated the concepts of…

Reports that, for Dutch viewers, the televised debates between Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter helped develop a presidential preference, regardless of the viewers' own political orientations, and that the debates may have benefited Carter. (GW)

Analyzes the visual and verbal content of the 1984 televised debates between Walter Mondale and Ronald Reagan. Asserts that the televised depiction of the debates visually structured portions of them in a manner inconsistent with their verbal content. Focuses on clash, when candidates engaged in arguments of attack or defense. (MS)

Studies focusing on televised presidential primary debates include four prespectives. From a historical perspective, televised presidential primary debates have increased slowly from 1956 through 1980. With the 1975 Federal Communications Commission ruling that independently sponsored campaign debates were news events exempt from "equal…

A study was conducted to determine the cognitive effects on viewers of the debate between vice-presidential candidates George Bush and Geraldine Ferraro. Adult passengers (N=468) on the Washington State ferries were interviewed, 191 before the debate and 277 afterward. Of those interviewed after the debate, 168 reported watching the debate and 108…

In partial replication of an analysis of the 1976 presidential campaign debates, two researchers analyzed the debate between Republican presidential candidates Ronald Reagan and George Bush (Houston, April 23, 1980) for its visual features, (amount and type of camera shots). The visual categories by which camera shots were coded included…

Surveys existing research on televised campaign debates; indicates areas for future research; considers the resources needed to expand and improve current research efforts; and encourages more systematic and sustained inquiry. Notes two compelling needs in terms of resources: an archive containing comprehensive records of media coverage of the…

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…

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) provided funding for local public television stations to broadcast political debates prior to the 1998 election; CPB commissioned research to determine how the programs aided viewers in the election process. Viewers of the public television station local debate night program found the program to be of…

Argues that political debates can usefully be viewed as a "televisual" form. Shows how audiences bring conventions to the viewing of debates grounded in forms dominating television narrative. Illustrates this perspective by analyzing debates in the 1984 United States Senatorial race between Jesse Helms and James Hunt. (HB)

A study analyzed the visual content of the 1984 New Hampshire and California Democratic candidate debates to determine how Jesse Jackson was portrayed by television. The New Hampshire debate was chosen because it offered the first opportunity for Jackson to be heard and compared to the other, more media-prominent candidates. The California debate…