Thoughts on the First Presidential Debate in HD

I got a chance to watch the presidential debate last night and engage in some of the online live-blogging that was happening from a number of sources, as much as I could while watching. I was listening and reading what people were saying on Election.Twitter, what my internet marketing professor thought, what two bloggers from The Atlantic were live-blogging, and also trying to think about the persuasive techniques.


People were asked to leave their comments on the debate and Andrew Sullivan chose this comment that a reader left. Why? It wasn't about policies or who was a better speaker. It was based on the body language of both candidates. Prior to reading this today, I commented that I would have felt differently about the debate if I had listened to it on the radio. I would have found McCain to be more sure of world events, even if he digressed, "By the way, I went there once..." as he did a number of times. Watching the event and seeing how McCain reacted while Obama was speaking - laughing out loud, not looking at him when Obama was looking at him. That made me feel that, even though John McCain was acting rude and very arrogant. So, I felt that this post was really saying something about how watching the debate on television links us to the limbic part of the brain in a way that wouldn't reach us if it were only broadcast on the radio.

Also, it was the first presidential debate ever televised in "High-def." What I thought was funny was that in the live-blogging from Marc Ambinder - also of the Atlantic - said, "9:10 McCain's tie is bleeding all over my TV."

Media Memoir

Thinking back on childhood, I can see that my surrounding life was very much impacted by media. I can’t imagine growing up without it. I know I would read books, which usually seemed like a better use of my time, but with so many other interesting media available – why bother focusing on that? I would read lots of books for school, so I forgave myself. The television had the most impact, however the radio, when I drove in the car with my mom or when I first got my computer in 6^th grade, those too became integrated into my way of life.

The most primal “medium”, after books, to which I was first interested in would probably be radio. Whenever I was in the car my mom would listen to Star 99.9, which is a station in Connecticut that still plays music from the 90’s, or my dad would listen to his favorite “oldies” station mostly consisting of music that had long since been converted to tapes from eight-tracks. One radio show on Star 99.9 was called “Love Songs at Night” and you could call in a request for a song. I requesting a song to dedicate to the boy I had a crush on at the time. It seemed like the thing to do. I also loved radio because I would find out about new songs by Mariah Carey – my favorite artist growing up, which was before her breakdown.

My brother and I used to watch cartoons, mainly on Disney or Cartoon Network together in the morning during the summer when we would stay at our family’s cottage on a lake. Then when the weather got warmer we would go outside and spend the day in the water. During the school year, I would find myself unwinding by sitting in front of the TV for a half hour before starting my homework. Also, before we went out to the bus during the school year, we would play Nintendo 64 with our neighbors; it served as motivation to get up and ready in the morning for this time of play. I remember how mad we would become if we didn’t beat a new level on “Mischief Makers” before my mom was nagging us to get out for the bus. I know videogames are an alternative medium themselves, but I thought it was a bit more “educational” than just simply watching the TV. They were interactive!

Then, interaction really hit home when I found a big, heavy, cow-print box sitting in my basement one day. What’s this? – Why my very own computer! Of course it was for the entire family, but I couldn’t help but think about all the wonderful things I could do on a computer. Before my parents bought our first computer from Gateway, I would often use a new-age typewriter for typing school papers, and I was sick of using it even though it was a fairly nice one. The internet didn’t really hit home until I was in middle school, but then I was on AOL with my first screen name and email address, I believe it was “MBLovebug”, and that was the end of life as I knew it.

It is safe to say that my childhood was molded by media, like most others. I would, more often than not prefer to watch TV than read a book. Although, I will say that I was reluctant to get an iPod because I didn’t like the concept of instant gratification. I was happy with my CD player, and enjoyed the moments where I would carefully select which CD I wanted to listen to next. Now, I can have all my music at my fingertips, and it bothers me a little bit. Maybe I’ve inherited this quality from my Dad’s who still has his eight-track collection from the 70’s. I feel the need to preserve what once was in this ever-evolving world of technology and media.