#20 Are the presidential debates helpful to voters?

Nicole Daniels and Michael Gonchar, Are Presidential Debates Helpful to Voters? Or should they be Scrapped? The New York Times 7 October 2020

The original purpose of the presidential debates were to help voters decide who they wanted to vote for as the next president, but now "the debates have devolved into 'professional wrestling matches' that reward snappy combacks" (Daniels). Even though the debates nowadays are a mess, me and my family still watch them. I think that they are very entertaining and because I'm not old enough to vote, I just watch them for fun.

A poll from Monmouth University found that 74% of voters were going to watch the debate, and that only 3% of them thought they were likely to hear something that will change their vote. To be honest, I would've thought there would be less people. This is because, if I were allowed to vote, I would already have my heart set on one candidate, and the debate is just saying things I already know about them but in a more "trying to convince me" manner. Plus, the debates are so chaotic, and most of it is just yelling and roasting each other, and the moderator trying to settle everything down.