by Ron Faucheux

Contents

Chapter 1 deals with one of the most difficult issues of debate sponsorship: candidate inclusion. This matter is critically important to the candidates and raises substantial questions as to fairness and practicality.

Chapter 2 sets forth standards relative to debate set styles, formats and other matters related to the structure and sponsorship of debates.

Chapter 3 provides a set of model debate ground rules that can be used in a wide variety of broadcast and nonbroadcast debates with different formats and set styles.

Chapter 4 lays out question block options and how they can be consistently structured and applied.

Chapter 5 details results from a nationwide poll of voters on debate issues.

Chapter 6 also discusses voter attitudes on debates, as identified in focus groups sponsored by the project.

Chapter 7 presents ideas on how the Internet can be used to improve debate participation and sponsorship.

Chapter 8 is an interview with Janet Brown, director of the Commission on Presidential Debates. In it, she addresses a range of specific debate sponsorship issues that relate to statewide, district and local elections.

Chapter 9 is a summary of interviews conducted with experienced debate organizers.

Chapter 10 is a series of practical "to do" checklists for debate sponsors and participants.

Chapter 11 explains the DebateWatch program and how it can be used to expand citizen participation in political debates.

Chapter 12 is a review of literature and a summary of previous research findings on debates.