Observers chafe at ground rules

By Matea Gold
Los Angeles Times

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Voters tuning into the first presidential debate tonight may be anticipating a free-wheeling give-and-take between the two candidates, but the occasion will actually be one of the most carefully structured events of the 2004 campaign.

The rules for the three presidential debates were negotiated by representatives of Sen. John Kerry and President Bush in a 32-page memorandum of understanding and leave little room for spontaneity.

They specify, among other things, that the candidates may not pose questions directly to each other, and they require the debate moderators to use specific language when cutting off long-winded answers.

The two campaigns haggled over the temperature in the room, how far the men could wander from their lecterns and how a colored light will alert them when they've gone over their allotted time. The candidates may bring paper and pens or pencils, but all must be submitted ahead of time so the items can be placed on the lecterns, each constructed and placed to Kerry-Bush specifications.

While past campaigns made similar agreements, the 2004 debate rules between Kerry and Bush are the most detailed and far-reaching of any election, and have rankled political observers who say the candidates are attempting to control media coverage.

According to the agreement, which also covers the vice-presidential debate Oct. 5, television cameras would not be permitted to show one candidate while the other is speaking or broadcast images of the audience's response — prohibitions the networks have rejected.

"We are not subject to agreements between the candidates," said Barbara Levin, a spokeswoman for NBC News. "We will use pictures as we see fit." Media experts said the requirement infringes on journalistic freedom.

Political experts said the campaigns' micromanagement of the debates undermines their value.

"This is a parody of what real civic give-and-take is and could be in America," said Martin Kaplan, director of the University of Southern California's Norman Lear Center, which studies the intersection of politics and entertainment.
 
"What we're desperate for is some really serious discussion, beyond the sound bites, about the problems the country is facing," he said. "Instead, what we've guaranteed is an exchange of bumper-sticker slogans."

The nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which sponsors and produces the events, has not signed the agreement, as requested by the Kerry and Bush campaigns. But in a statement posted on its Web site Monday, the commission said it will enforce the guidelines, and not depart from them without the approval of the campaigns. The campaigns are insisting that the moderators also sign the agreement or risk being replaced. ABC said Charles Gibson, who is scheduled to moderate the second debate Oct. 8 in St. Louis, will not do so.

Whether Jim Lehrer of PBS, moderating the first matchup tonight in Coral Gables, Fla., and the two other moderators will acquiesce to the demands remains unclear. Network officials indicated they do not believe they will.

Both sides brought in political heavyweights to lead the negotiations: powerhouse Washington attorney Vernon Jordan for Kerry and former Secretary of State James Baker for Bush.

The podiums each will measure 50 inches, and be set 10 feet apart — enough distance so the president's shorter stature will not create a strong contrast with his lanky rival. And "no candidate shall be permitted to use risers or any other device to create an impression of elevated height," according to the memorandum.

One issue that remains somewhat unresolved: the temperature in the room. The Bush campaign wanted it above 70 degrees, hoping to get Kerry to break out in a sweat. In the end, the campaigns settled on "industry standard."

Most of the rules agreed upon by the campaigns govern candidates' behavior.

The rules include a ban on props of any kind, including charts, diagrams or "other tangible things."

The candidates may not refer to anyone in the audience, as Al Gore did in a 2000 debate with Bill Bradley, when he pointed out a Iowa farmer who lost most of his crops to flooding and then asking his opponent why he voted against the flood-relief bill that year.

The former vice president also apparently inspired another regulation when, in a 2000 debate with Bush, he walked toward his rival while making a point. This year, the candidates must limit their movements to a "predesignated area" determined by the commission.

Los Angeles Times staff writer Mark Z. Barabak contributed to this report.