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Chris Wallace (left) speaks to Trump during the first presidential debate on September 29, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio, US – Photo: REUTERS
Chris Wallace, son of the MC, journalist Mike Wallace on the legendary show 60 Minutes, was the coordinator of the last debate session between Trump and Hillary Clinton four years ago. At the time, he was praised by both Democratic and Republican officials.
Selection criteria like?
Journalist Wallace joined Fox News in 2003, after leaving ABC News. Prior to that, he worked for NBC News, specializing in coverage of the 1980, 1984 and 1988 election campaigns. He was also the coordinator of Meet the Press from 1987 to 1988.
Just looking at some data from the veteran journalist’s career, it’s not hard to see what kind of characters will be moderators like him. The coordinators of the presidential debates are selected by the Committee for the Organization of Presidential Controversies (CPD).
According to the introductory information about the organization on the Debates.org website, CPD is a private and independent organization, not controlled by political parties or outside organizations. CPD does not endorse, support or oppose the party or candidate. Nor does it receive funding from governments or parties, political action committees, or candidates. Since 1988, CPD has sponsored face-to-face debates in every US presidential election.
Since the beginning of September, the CPD has published the list of people chosen to be the coordinator of the presidential debates this fall in the United States. Accordingly, following journalist Chris Wallace, the second debate to take place on October 15 in Miami, Florida will be led by journalist Steve Scully, senior producer and political editor for the C-SPAN television network. – coordinator. Mr. Scully is the alternate chairperson for all general discussions. system in 2016.
The third debate that will take place on October 22 at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, will be coordinated by journalist Kristen Welker, who is in charge of reporting on the White House and is also a presenter for NBC News. . Another debate between the two vice presidential candidates on October 7 at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, will be coordinated by journalist Susan Page, head of the USA Today newspaper office in Washington.
CPD has three qualification criteria for selecting these coordinators. First, they must know the candidates and the main issues of the presidential campaign. Second, they must have general experience of live television broadcasting. And third, they must clearly understand that the debate must focus on maximizing time and attention, attention to candidates and their opinions.
The debate coordinator is also the one who actively chooses the questions to ask the two candidates. These questions were not communicated to the participants in the debate or to the CPD.
Honor is “very scary”
In the article titled “How to coordinate a presidential debate?” Posted on the Slate website, journalist Leon Krauze, Slate columnist and co-host of President Donald Trump’s Trumpcast postcast channel, shares his one “insider” experience.
Mr. León Krauze said that if it was necessary to describe this job in one word, it was “terrifying”. The journalist who was selected as moderator of the 2018 presidential debate in Mexico admits: “For a radio / television journalist, there is no greater challenge” than to act as coordinator of a presidential debate.
Despite the advice of his colleagues, Mr. León Krauze left the cafe for 3 months and still could not sleep due to worry about the pressure of work, even when he was very experienced. war “in the field of television.
“Coordinating a true presidential debate is a terrifying experience and whoever says otherwise either did not do it or is lying,” wrote journalist León Krauze.
However, this journalist also shared that it was a very special experience. For him, it was also a watershed moment in his career, because it helped him determine what kind of journalist he wanted to become.
CPD can change the form of the argument
The United States Presidential Dispute Organization Committee (CPD) said it could change the form of debate after the Trump-Biden debate. “Last night’s debate (September 29) showed that more structure needs to be added to the form of the rest of the debates to ensure an orderly discussion of the issues,” said CPD. But it is not clear what will change.
Despite a record following, the Sept. 29 debate is considered one of the worst presidential debates in history, when the two sides repeatedly interrupted and attacked instead of concentrating. on important topics.
TRAN PHUONG
