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Don’t expect another TV debate

Published: 24 Sep. 2024, 20:04

KANG TAE-HWA
The author is a Washington correspondent of the JoongAng Ilbo.

A 70-inch television measures 158 centimeters wide and 88 centimeters long. The smartphone screen is smaller. On Sept. 10, 67.1 million American voters watched the TV debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, with each candidate shown on left and right side of the screen.

Trump didn’t give Harris a single glance, seemingly a tactic to ignore her. Harris, on the other hand, stared at Trump and continued to question him persistently. As a result, the screen showed Harris yelling at Trump and Trump being yelled at, while looking straight ahead. After the debate, 63 percent of voters said Harris won while 37 percent said Trump won.

The debate with President Joe Biden in June was different. Back then, the screen featured Trump pointing out Biden’s administrative mistakes on one side and Biden writing something down on a paper with his head down on the other side. The result was Trump’s landslide victory.

Voters pay attention to videos and images as much as the content of debates. John F. Kennedy proved the classic moment in politics on a black-and-white television in the 1960s. But the TV debate on Sept. 10 didn’t lead to a dramatic rise in Harris’ rating, unlike the debate in June which eventually led to Biden dropping out from the race. Here are the reasons why.

Brown University Prof. Wendy Schiller said that as the election approaches, the influence of a TV debate has been reduced to giving conviction or disappointment to existing supporters rather than expanding to undecided voters. Harris succeeded in making Trump lose his composure, but that’s not enough for Trump supporters to turn their backs on him.

Harvard University Prof. Theda Skocpol predicted that another television debate wouldn’t happen. While Biden’s old age controversy was an issue that could make Democratic supporters withdraw their support, Harris being a radical leftist or Trump being a weird leader is not enough for supporters to change their minds. In other words, the two candidates have few reasons to have a debate which is ineffective and involves an unnecessary burden.

It is highly likely that an all-out mud-slinging will take place until the election. Trump has already made false claims and doesn’t hesitate to lie. His tactic is to make his supporters angry and come to the polling station regardless of factual truth. Harris is adhering to the strategy of promising the future, but it is unclear whether she will maintain this stance until the end.

Vanderbilt University Prof. Thomas Schwartz said that this is a dangerous election that will determine whether America would remain the beacon of freedom and democracy. Experts agree that extreme polarization will be prolonged — just like the television debate screen that was divided into two sides.