North Central College is putting a spin on the traditional view of presidential debates.
Rather than break down the content given by the candidates, communication and debate experts from NCC and Rice University will examine how well the candidates get their message across to the public during the first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
North Central’s departments of political science and communications are co-sponsoring the Presidential Debate Academic Panel and Watch Party from 7 to 10 p.m. Monday in Smith Hall at Old Main, 30 N. Brainard St., Naperville.
Between 75 and 100 people are expected to attend the free event, open to anyone who wants to see the Hofstra University debate that comes six weeks before the Nov. 8 election.
The nature of the 2016 president campaign makes for the perfect opportunity to study the divergent strategies employed by the two candidates, said William Muck, associate professor and chairman of NCC’s political science department.
“As political scientists, our interest in the debate is who’s able to take control and shape that narrative,” Muck said. “We are looking at how the candidates connect with the American public.”
Prior to the debate, the panelists will explain what to expect and the types of communication Democratic nominee Clinton, former U.S. secretary of state, and Republican nominee Trump, a New York businessman and real estate developer, are likely to employ. Following the debate, the panelists rate how the two performed.
Muck said each of the panelists brings a different perspective to the conversation. “All study different forms of communication,” he said.
NCC associate professor Amy Buxbaum specializes in organizational communication and rhetoric, and associate professor John Stanley coaches the college’s nationally ranked forensics and speech team.
Professor Steve Macek, chairman of the communication department, teaches courses on new media, public discourse and media criticism at North Central.
Muck said the college also wanted to include an outside expert and chose David Worth, director of the George R. Brown Forensics Society and lecturer in the School of Humanities at Rice University. He also has been coaching intercollegiate speech and debate since 1993.
Muck said Clinton’s strength lies in the details and her extensive experience in government and that to be effective she needs to steer the conversation toward substantive issues and the specifics of her policies.
He said Clinton also needs to humanize herself in the eyes of the public.
Muck said Trump likely will lean his dialogue toward painting his ideals in more broad strokes and could try to pull Clinton into his adversarial confrontations.
“The question is whether he will use the same strategy he used in the Republican debates,” Muck said. “Can Donald Trump draw her into his comfort zone and pull her out of hers.”
“It’s going to be so interesting how it all plays out,” he added.
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