by Stacy Hutto
News editor
Southeastern students filled the Shearer Hall Great Room for the first presidential debate of the 2012 election. Over 60 students watched as President Barack Obama and republican candidate Mitt Romney debated about their different platforms.
Afterward, the debate students voiced their thoughts about how they thought the debate went. One thing is clear: many students are following the debates very closely to see how they can make their voices heard.
Before the debate, Dr. Shannon McCraw explained for students watching their first presidential debate how the debate was formatted. McCraw also told the crowd what the squiggly lines at the bottom of the screen mean.
He gave students some helpful hints on how to watch the debate and things to look for such as how television changed how debates are shown to the public.
During the debate, the great hall was filled with silence except for the debaters and the moderator on TV.
The crowd was focused on what the two men were saying not only about their opponents; but also what their platforms are; and, in Romney’s case, what he would change if he won the election and, in Obama’s case, what he has already done and what he will continue to do if he remains in office.
After the debate, McCraw made some interesting points. Research on political debates is done so people can grow to understand debaters by their body language.
McCraw mentioned that the New York Times has a moving image on the front page of their website. The image is about three minutes long, with half the time focused on Obama and half the time focused on Romney. The image focuses on the body language traits of both men.
Another point McCraw made was that most people decide who won the debate after 30 minutes of news coverage. The people who do not watch news coverage after the debate usually pick differently from those who watch the news coverage.
Evan Wakefield, a Southeastern student, said that he feels it is important for fellow students to watch the debates and pay attention to what the candidates are saying.
He said, “It’s important because we as students are thought to have little voices when it comes to politics and decision making. I just think if we could come together to educate ourselves, we could break this perception and become heard.”
The next debate watch party is Oct. 11 at 7:45 p.m. in the same location as the first debate.
The Oct. 11 debate is the only time Vice President Joe Biden and Romney’s running mate, Paul Ryan will debate.
According to Wakefield, the hosts of the Debate Watch party are going to incorporate games into the viewing of the debate.