Debate moderators chosen; controversy immediately rains down

by Rob Howard
Associate Editor

Moderators for the three presidential debates were announced today by the Commission on Presidential Debates. And almost instantly, some of the selections, particularly CNN’s Anderson Cooper, were controversial.

The Associated Press reported Friday morning that, “NBC News chief anchor Lester Holt will moderate the first scheduled presidential debate on Sept. 26, with ABC's Martha Raddatz, CNN's Anderson Cooper and Fox News Channel's Chris Wallace lined up for others.

“The Commission on Presidential Debates also said Friday that CBS News' Elaine Quijano will moderate the vice presidential debate between Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Tim Kaine on Oct 4.”

The controversy over the selection of Cooper centered on his interview with Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. In June, Bondi had shown up to discuss the Pulse nightclub terror attack on mostly gay customers at the club. Cooper, who is openly gay, immediately called into question Bondi’s position on gay marriage.

According to Jim Stinson, writing for the PoliZette website, “Last June, when Cooper interviewed Pam Bondi, Florida attorney general, just after the Pulse gay nightclub massacre in Orlando, he repeatedly queried her — and seemed to berate her — for her previous stances on gay marriage.

“Bondi later complained she was blindsided. She had shown up to discuss a terrible terrorist attack on mostly gay customers at a nightclub, and her record on gay marriage was called into question. It was made the issue of the moment by Cooper.”

According to Stinson, Cooper’s choice “brings additional baggage to the second debate, already clouded by questions about Facebook’s involvement.”

“For the second half of that debate, moderators will choose questions based on what is ‘trending’ on Facebook. That potential for allowing social media algorithms and tech wizards to influence the debate, in closed rooms in Silicon Valley, potentially using ‘trending tricks’ of the trade, has already been raised as a point of concern for Republicans,” writes Stinson.

“Facebook was caught earlier this year suppressing trending conservative news items. Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg is a well-known environmentalist and open borders advocate, and has publicly criticized Trump.”

AP reported that, “The first and third debates between Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump will be question-and-answer sessions on six separate topics chosen by the moderators and revealed a week in advance. Wallace will moderate the third debate. Raddatz and Cooper will team up for the second session, a town hall-style meeting with half of the questions to be posed by audience members.”

The Commission had delayed its announcement of moderators because they were concerned about the moderator interchange with the candidates becoming part of the news story, clouding the debate coverage.

The delay was, ”Due in part to an unprecedented challenge the bipartisan Commission faces in selecting individuals who are immune (or at least as immune as possible) to accusations of bias,” according to CNN Money. “While that is always a concern for the Commission, the sources said it is more challenging than ever this time around due to one factor: Donald Trump.

“The last thing the Commission wants is for the moderator to become part of the story about a debate. Yet Trump's aggressive attacks on the media and complaints about unfair treatment have effectively guaranteed that the moderators will come under scrutiny from conservatives.

“This has made the Commission even more cautious than usual in researching potential moderators, sources said. The Commission fears that Trump would use even the slightest whiff of a pro-Clinton bias to attack a moderator and undermine his or her credibility.”

The Commission succeeded at least in part, according to the AP report: “The commission avoided potential political problems by not selecting Fox's Megyn Kelly, whose tough questioning angered Trump in the first GOP candidates' debate last summer, and ABC's George Stephanopoulos, who was a White House aide of Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton.”

But it remains to be seen if the already controversial moderators of the second debate will be able to avoid becoming part of the news. Will Anderson Cooper ask pointed questions about LGBT rights and same-sex marriage? We will have to wait to see.

Each of the debates is scheduled for 90 minutes, with a 9 p.m. EDT start time. In addition to the September 26 debate, the other presidential debates will take place on Oct. 9 and 19. The vice-presidential debate, to be moderated by CBS News’ Elaine Quijano, takes place October 4.

The Gayly – September 2, 2016 @ 2:10 p.m.