CNN's Targeted Debate Coverage

Isn't it enough already that we can't have more than a few seconds after a major speech, press conference, or debate before the pundits and so called experts fill the airwaves with their opinions. It would be nice to have the news broadcasts summarize what has just taken place and perhaps go to a justly deserved few minutes of commercial time so that when they go back on the air our heads would be a bit clearer and we would own our thoughts before the TV starts to fill in the contours of our brain. Wouldn't it?

But perhaps just asking for some space after the debate is now a quaint idea. Because CNN has gone a step further by having a series of red and blue targets put around the debate screen so we can see how various types of viewers are responding in real time to what they see and hear from the candidates. No longer are we allowed to wait to the end of the debate for others' opinions to shape us but in this not too brave world, CNN has decided that we must be bombarded instantly with the political ebb and flow.

The debates we watch are not really debates - most of us know that already. They are akin to two candidates sitting around on Meet The Press and answering prefabricated questions with prefabricated answers. There is little chance for oratorical greatness and true give and take between the two combatants without the guidance of the anointed host.

But at least we have been able to sit back and make our own judgments from the safety of our living rooms. We can discuss what we are seeing with our families and friends and for a moment or two suspend the jockeying for leadership in the presidential horse race. Now even the sanctity of our homes have been invaded with those annoying shape shifting targets that let us know if viewers are annoyed because candidate A was picking his nose or candidate B did not look directly at his opponent.

CNN claims to have the "best political team on TV" as Wolf Blitzer continually harps about. But with the advent of this incredibly intrusive technology they no longer deserve to be seen while the actual debate is taking place. One would be wise to turn to CSPAN where old fashioned is still in and there is still a sense that all of this means something. Instead of turning the debate into a sports spectacle, CSPAN still allows its cameras to roll and we get to watch Jim Lehrer explain the in-house rules to the audience and we watch a debate totally free from any bias.

Ultimately, the debate is about who won and who lost and who gained enough momentum to carry on to victory. But between the millions of ads and the hundred of paid buffoons who spin everything for the cameras, it would be nice to have a ninety minute time frame where words do matter and we get to sit with our thoughts and think intelligently about who we would want as the next president.