The Presidential Debates : Fifty Years of High Risk TV Book

This is a very detailed, sometimes perhaps too detailed, account of the televised presidential debates from 1960 to 1996.

Tthis is also a good resource for learning about how debate formats, locations, moderators, panelists, etc. are or were chosen for previous debates.

I was a bit surprised by two glaring errors in the edition I have (this edition published pre-2000 election). On page 110 it refers to the Bush and Dukakis debate in 1998 instead of 1988. On that same page it quotes a 1992 New York Times article claiming George HW Bush was taking shots in one debate from Perot and Mr. Carter. Carter never debated Bush. That should have read Clinton. Those are the two errors I spotted which cause me concern for the historical accuracy of other tales in the book.

I very much enjoyed the conclusion, particularly the remarks about the media and the potential impact the Internet would have on debates. Turns out it has had a significant impact in terms or pre and post-debate reaction and hype!

The boom is filled with lots of interesting stories and negotiations I never imagined surround presidential debates. All political journalists should read it and politicos should also consider picking it up.