The average age of the Commission’s Board of Directors is over 70, and their preferences of a bygone era shows.
Tuesday night’s presidential debate was far from Kennedy and Nixon’s iconic standoff, and trying to fit modern candidates and issues into Kennedy and Nixon’s framework just might be part of the problem. Viewership for the debate was down drastically from last year: 29 million viewers, compared with almost 43 million for the first debate in 2016. Approval ratings for the debate were even worse, only 17% positive. Meanwhile, the Board of Directors for the Commission on Presidential Debates seems to reflect the preferences of a bygone era, with an average age of over 70. A new release from the Commission calling for “additional structure” in the debates reflects an understandable desire for the civility of earlier years, but also suggests that the board may still be turning to old solutions for new problems.
