Noting that confrontation is a fundamental element of debate, a study examined the confrontational nature of a 1980 presidential debate between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan by analyzing its verbal and visual context as presented through television. By means of videotapes, still photographs, and a typed transcript, each instance of a verbal…

Each debate judge's philosophy consists not of one single view of argument, but rather of a theory of argument containing several independent levels of belief. One current issue is the extent to which a judge should impose his or her bias on the participants in a debate round. Judges can impose rules on debates by utilizing those rules to which…

Pointing out that the "tabula rasa" debate perspective is built on the assumption that free and open debate is the fairest and most accurate method of resolving disputes, this paper argues that the "tabula rasa" approach itself has not been subjected to a similar scrutiny. The paper notes that this perspective was derived from…

The studies counterplan, frequently used as a debate strategy by the negative, is unlikely to produce the desired effect in the United States Congress, its frequently mentioned target. First, Congress tends to move slowly, which implies that an optimal solution determined by a studies counterplan may not be adopted soon after the completion of the…

A study of the 1980 debate between Republican presidential candidates Ronald Reagan and George Bush demonstrates what influence, if any, a debate has on the voting public. The unit of analysis used in the study was each single message presented by each candidate without interruption by the other candidate or the moderator. Two investigators made…

Because the affirmative plan in debate cannot be modified once it has been criticized by the second negative, it is important that the affirmative team word the plan carefully in simple and concise language, assuring that it upholds all possible policies and contains only those planks that support the resolution. Other considerations in…

In debate, it has been argued that a judge's decision is between two competing policy systems. This paradigm does not admit of direct refutation by the negative team considering the predicate facts and value assumptions of the affirmative policy. A second position is that straight refutation is an appropriate means of analysis in resolving…

The Lincoln-Douglas debates were significant in the history of political journalism in that new ground was broken by reporters traveling extensively with candidates, making extensive use of shorthand to record campaign speeches, and fighting for the press rights to cover the events. Also, the press coverage preserved the candidates' debates on the…

An investigation into the types of propositions used in criminal trials reveals that the question being adjudicated in criminal trials is a proposition of fact that may or may not be influenced by policy and value considerations. The argument is offered that the proposition of fact identifies the ultimate issue in a legal debate. While value…

Suggesting that the university faculty members assigned extra-curricular duties with forensics have been denied proper evaluation procedures, this paper argues for the need to apply professional evaluation standards to forensics directors. It proposes four separate components to be considered in developing such standards: (1) professional…

Presented by one of two debaters from the United States who participated in a debate tour of England under the sponsorship of the Speech Communication Association, this paper discusses the tour in terms of three major goals: cultural exchange, developing dialogue skills, and educational exchange. In addition, it comments on the ability of American…

Building a strong college debate program begins in the classroom where the coach can help young people engage in comprehensive research of contemporary findings, integrate the findings into meaningful analysis, develop argumentative skills, think on their feet, and do the best job of debating possible. A coach must also communicate to debaters…

This paper presents a paradigm based upon four premises: persuasion is any means employed to make someone respond in a predetermined manner; persuasion is at its best in formal debate; debate should encourage judges to place confidence in debaters' credibility; and debating is an art in which the participants must be fully aware of their role as…

The rhetorical criticism of the Patricia Hearst trial published in this quarterly journal consists of two articles written before a verdict was reached. The first, "Closing Arguments in the Patricia Hearst Trial," by Nancy Gossage McDermid, reflects the author's perception of stylistic and substantive differences between the arguments of…

In this paper the writer attempts to derive and apply a theory of validity for inductive or probable argumentation. The following definition of rhetorical validity is proposed: an argument is valid when, in an adversarial situation, the degree of certainty claimed by (or for) a conclusion is less than or equal to that established by its related…