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October 24, 2006

Who won? Who knows?

Dante Chinni says journalists should tell readers/viewers who wins political debates as part of regular news coverage. But he offers no criteria for what constitutes winning and losing a political debate beyond reporting the "indication of the general feeling in the auditorium."

Huh?

I think his idea is solid--sometimes there are clear winners and losers, and that should be reported. But I know what I mean by that.

Knowing what I mean by that is not, however, all that's necessary. I also have to be able state clear criteria based on reasonable critical techniques and recognized definitions of key terms so that my results may be reproduced by other observers. In other words, who wins or loses should not be mere political interpretation.

And it should not merely be a poll of the audience. That's a whole 'nother story. 



Posted by acline at October 24, 2006 8:18 AM | | Spotlight