2019 DNC Presidential Debate

Videos: The State of Debates—LMU Faculty Talk Stagecraft, Politics & More

With the December 19, 2019 Democratic National Committee presidential debate happening at LMU soon, ten faculty members from across the university sat for on-camera interviews about a range of topics related to debates, including stagecraft, politics, and history.

Watch these five short videos below to hear about everything from how a candidate’s posture and eye contact affect their likability, to the differences we see when women are candidates and moderators, to how the sweat on a past candidate’s upper lip may have cost him an election. 

LMU Professor Michele Hammers (communication studies) and LMU First Lady and journalism lecturer Carol Costello discuss how woman candidates have changed the nature of running for president of the U.S., including a widening of topics in debates.
LMU Professors Michael A. Genovese (political science) and Fernando Guerra (political science and Chicano/a Latino/a studies) recount the first televised debate between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy, and how transforming it was for politics. Now, every debate is significant and “every campaign has experts about the debate, how you appear on television, what you wear, how stand … everything.”
LMU Professors Richard Fox (political science) and Charles Swanson (film and television production) take a behind-the-scenes look at the stagecraft of a televised debate. What music gets played? What do the graphics look like? Which candidates stand at which podium? And so much more.
LMU Associate Professor Nora A. Murphy (psychology) and LMU Assistant Professor Mikki Kressbach (film, TV, and media studies) share insights into non-verbal behaviors that affect how viewers perceive candidates on the debate stage. Hint: Watch for good posture, eye contact, and open gestures.
LLS Clinical Professor Jessica Levinson (law) and LMU Assistant Professor Thomas Dowd (communication studies) weigh in on the purpose of debates today—and the value they hold for candidates and American voters alike.