14 DAY TRIAL // YouTube will host a debate that CNN set up for the second time in two weeks: all 8 Republican candidates on the You Choose '08 platform, just like the 8 candidates from the Democrats' party not too long ago.
All the questions will be taken from videos submitted by users on YouTube which will be broadcasted and answered in the live, prime-time event in St Petersburg, Florida. This is not an innovatory means to reach out to all the categories of electors but it is demonstrated to have somewhat the same reach into the marked as the debates on TV have.
More than 3000 videos were posted on YouTube in connection to this event and they will probably continue pouring as the deadline for submitting video-questions is yet a long ways to go: the 25th of November, three days before the actual debate will take place. YouTube News and Politics' Steve said on the official blog that all the help from the users will most likely generate a very lively and compelling debate in which the discussion between the candidates vying for the Republican nomination will be directed by the users themselves while asking that the ones who did not hit the submit button please do so as quickly as possible.
The first debate, the one between the Democrats had some very interesting arguments, one of which made the headlines for weeks: the dialog between Senators Clinton and Obama about whether the candidates would speak directly to foreign dictators.
Politicians have been known to fight for power and pubic acknowledgement on any and all media and this is just another good occasion for them to get noticed but by bringing the debate on the internet the categories of people that are able to reach it are a lot wider and the usual hecklers will be out of the loop this time. Bring on the good-quality "every day I go up /down 5% in the polls" fight I say!