Presidential Debates

I ran across two news stories this week describing campus viewing parties for last Friday’s presidential debate that featured the use of clickers to poll audience members.

About a hundred students watched the debate at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina.  They were asked via clickers which candidate they preferred going into the debate as well as whether or not their support shifted as a result of the debate.

Meanwhile, another hundred students and community members watched the debate at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas.  Barbara DeSanto, chair of Washburn’s mass media department, said that clicker questions were used to involve audience members in the debate and to compare local polling data, gathered via clickers, with national polling data.

Have you used clickers during debate watching parties?  Are you planning to do so for tonight’s vice-presidential debate or next week’s presidential debate at Belmont University here in Nashville?  What kinds of questions are useful to ask before, during, or after a debate?  And have you used clickers in your courses to help students engage with the presidential election process this year?