Washington - When Mitt Romney is agitated his
arms flail. President Barack Obama has a tendency to drone on and on.
Debate experts say both should keep those quirks in check during the
upcoming presidential debates.
That's because in the
world of political theater, nobody likes a ham or a know-it-all, said
Melissa Wade, a debate professor at Emory University.
So Romney should keep that whiteboard full of facts and figures under wraps. And Obama should keep the lecturing to a minimum.
"It's the generation of Twitter and Facebook and efficient language choices are persuasive," Wade said.
Both candidates are
considered skilled debaters -- Romney's campaign called Obama a
"universally acclaimed public speaker," and Romney was lauded for his
performance during the Republican presidential primary debates. However,
there's a lot more to effective debating than clever rhetoric.
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Delivery, tone and body language -- almost as much as substance -- convey a lot to would-be voters, political experts say.
Over the next three
weeks, voters will have plenty of opportunities to watch the political
posturing unfold. Wednesday night's debate in Denver is the first of
three between the president and Romney.
The first debate focuses on domestic policy, so exchanges are bound to be lively, debate experts say.
"Romney and Obama will
disagree with the foundation of what caused our economy to go south,"
said Todd Graham, director of debate at Southern Illinois University.
The two men will also
mix it up over their different proposals for trimming the nation's debt
and entitlement spending, addressing tax rates, and reforming the
nation's health care system.
For voters keeping score
at home, pay attention to "things like argument depth, trying to get
beneath the surface of the argument. They've become quite skilled at not
answering the question. They'll repeat the question and then the next
few things out of their mouths don't answer the question," Graham said.
Also, "Look for inconsistencies ... things they have or have not said before," he said.
Vice President Joe Biden
and Romney's running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, will face off
once on foreign policy matters. And like their top-of-the-ticket
counterparts, the veep candidates also have some habits to watch out for.
"Ryan has so much less
experience that he's going to be on talking points for the ticket," Wade
said, and that could make him seem a bit stiff. On the other hand,
"Biden has to be careful to not be glib about it and assume his superior
knowledge."
Voters have already handicapped the presidential candidates' performance.
According to an ABC
News/Washington Post national poll released Monday, 55% of likely voters
say they think the president will win the debate, with 31% saying the
former Massachusetts governor will be victorious. The findings on this
question from the new survey are in line with a CNN/ORC International
poll conducted right after the Democratic Convention last month, where
likely voters predicted by 59% to 34% that Obama was more likely than
Romney to prevail in the October showdowns.
The campaigns spent the bulk of last week downplaying expectations.
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However, there's still plenty of room for surprises.
"The mistakes the
presidential candidates have made over the years are numerous. Poor body
language has been a common blunder. As much as candidates focus on
perfecting the substance of what they say before the cameras, a large
number of Americans are really most interested to see how they say it,"
CNN contributor and history professor Julian Zelizer wrote for CNN.
Despite weeks of
preparation and practice with debate sparring partners, candidates often
revert to nervous tics under the harsh glare of spotlights. During a
2008 debate, Sen. John McCain paced on stage; in 1992, President George
H.W. Bush glanced at his watch; and in 1960, Vice President Richard
Nixon was sweaty and cast furtive glances.
Both Obama and Romney have similar habits -- "tells" that signal that they're nervous.
The mistakes candidates make in debates
"Romney is more
aggressive, he talks with his hands more and is more animated. That's
not a good thing," Wade said, adding that at times Romney seems
irritated when pressed. "He's a smart man ... but because he is not
fully consistent in his message, it shows in his face."
Such behavior could come across as impatient, Wade said.
"The best thing he could
do is shove those hands in his pocket," she said. "Even if he were to
put one hand in the pocket it would calm ... his body and face down."
Obama may have a
reputation as "cool, calm, collected and very comfortable in his body,"
Wade said, but he too has his own set of body language challenges.
The town hall format --
such as the one scheduled for October 16 at Hofstra University in
Hempstead, New York -- is Obama's nemesis. It offers a looser, more
classroom-like setting, one in which the former law school lecturer
tends to slip into the role of an academic.
"It's his worst format,"
Wade said. "It was not as pronounced as McCain wandering around. Obama
in a town hall is more long-winded. He just can't help himself."
Both candidates tend to fare well in settings in which they are standing behind podiums.
"The setup with lecterns
and longer questions and answers allows for more direct exchange," Wade
said. "They're looking at the moderator and the audience, but they're
also able to look at each other."
But there's also a psychological disadvantage to this, said SIU's Graham.
"When seated, the candidates become less aggressive," he said.
For viewers, that's a good thing, Graham added, saying that voters tend to see aggressive debating tactics as bullying.
"For God sakes, don't
actually debate. If you actually debate you tend not to do well in the
polling the next day," he said. "The public tends to think they were too
aggressive and mean and they don't like them."
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Even things like height differences alter perception and the types of gestures a candidate should use, Wade said.
"Most of the
presidential primary debates were the standard format of the line of
humans behind lecterns. It generates some power dynamics in size
difference," she added. "We associate height with power. It's a subtle
stereotype that goes on."
So someone smaller, like
Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, "had to use larger hand gestures to
compensate with size," Wade said.
Sourse: edition.cnn.com
Sourse: edition.cnn.com
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