How important are presidential debates today? To answer this question, the authors place modern debates in their cultural and historical context, tracing their origins and development in the American political tradition, from the eighteenth century to the present, and concluding with some thoughtful suggestions for improving their current effectiveness.

"With all their faults, presidential debates remain the best way for most voters to learn about candidates. This book in turn is one of the best ways to learn all the ins and outs about presidential debates."--Newton N. Minow "Presidential Debates should not be ignored....[It] is well researched, well written, and full of interesting ideas."--Columbia Journalism Review "Jamieson and Birdsell are unique in their historical approach to the practice of debate. Their defense of its contributions toward 'creating an informed electorate' is interesting, informative, and well documented."--Perspective "With all their faults, presidential debates remain the best way for most voters to learn about candidates. This book in turn is one of the best ways to learn all the ins and outs about presidential debates."--Newton N. Minow "Presidential Debates should not be ignored....[It] is well researched, well written, and full of interesting ideas."--Columbia Journalism Review "Jamieson and Birdsell are unique in their historical approach to the practice of debate. Their defense of its contributions toward 'creating an informed electorate' is interesting, informative, and well documented."--Perspective

Kathleen Hall Jamieson is Dean of the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. She has written two other books on political discourse--Packaging the Presidency and Eloquence in an Electronic Age--and has served on the 20th-Century Fund's Taskforce on Presidential Debates. David S. Birdsell is Assistant Professor at Baruch College and consultant to the Congressional Management Foundation.