‘What’s Up,’ Senator? A Debate for the Blogging Age

Source: New York Times

‘What’s Up,’ Senator? A Debate for the Blogging Age
Josh Haner/The New York Times

http://www.imgred.com/

Democratic presidential candidates were asked questions on Iraq, Darfur, gay marriage and alternative energy in videos submitted to YouTube.

By PATRICK HEALY and JEFF ZELENY
Published: July 24, 2007
Facing an unusual series of video recorded questions from Americans — by turns toughly worded, highly emotional, and simply offbeat — the eight Democratic presidential candidates sparred last night over race, same-sex marriage, Darfur and troops in Iraq.

The televised debate, sponsored by CNN and the video-sharing Web site YouTube, was unusual from the start. A man speaking on a homemade video — instead of the usual television anchorman — opened the forum by imploring the candidates to answer directly and not “beat around the bush,” the last delivered as a play on the president’s surname.

And at times the candidates were direct.

Representative Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio castigated his fellow Democrats for keeping troops in Iraq, attributing it to politics and fear. Speaking of the children in Darfur, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware said, “Those kids will be dead by the time the diplomacy is over.”

Some questions put the candidates on the spot in a personal way, as when they had to respond to whether they sent their children to public or private schools or whether they would be willing to be paid the national minimum wage if they become president.


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/24/us/politics/24debate.html?hp

Best debate so far.

but the format was novel.