"Underlying it all is the assumption that as we allow ideas to circulate in a marketplace of ideas, the best ideas will eventually win. Sure, word warfare can nudge us on some issues like yea or nay on a state infrastructure initiative or a county sales tax or a school district bond. However, when it comes to the biggest, most controversial cleavages splitting society think gun control or abortion or prayer in school verbal jousting doesn't move minds much."
"Consider the conclusions of an expansive 2019 National Bureau of Economic Research study from scholars at Harvard University and UC Berkeley, who set out to understand what effect televised political debates really had. After studying 56 TV debates between 1952 and 2016 spanning seven countries including Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and South Korea they found that debates had no significant impact. That meant these debates neither caused people to switch sides nor helped undecided voters make up their minds. The impact was close to zero."
Debating politics is deeply embedded in American and Western culture and shapes education, journalism, meetings and political rituals. The assumption persists that allowing ideas to circulate in a marketplace will let the best ideas win and that rhetorical combat uncovers true beliefs. Debate can influence simple, local referendum choices but fails to shift opinions on major polarizing issues such as gun control, abortion or school prayer. A large 2019 National Bureau of Economic Research study analyzing 56 televised debates across seven countries found no significant effect on voter choices or undecided voters; the impact was close to zero. Arguments offline and online also seldom change minds when faced with new political evidence.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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