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Patrick Stewart
With the presidential primary season fast approaching, the public will get to know a number of often unknown candidates from both major parties. Traditionally, presidential debates—especially during the primary season—have been a means of differentiating candidates based on their leadership qualities and the positions they hold on important issues of national concern.
A new book by the professor of political science at the University of Alicante Patrick A. Stewart, The audience decides: Applause, laughter and boos during debates in the age of Trump, argues that this may no longer be the case. Taking a close look at the 2016 and 2020 presidential primary debates, Stewart shows how the two major political parties have largely abdicated their responsibility to identify and vet the best candidates among whom citizens choose to lead their party respective and, ultimately, the country.
What sets the book apart is its focus on the influential role the studio audience plays during the debates through their cheers, applause, laughter and boos of the candidates, and how that in turn affects reporters and everyone those watching at home.
The desire of higher ratings networks and political parties for more followers has caused the debates to have more less qualified candidates on stage. This causes opposing candidates to compete with each other for limited speaking time, as well as for the aforementioned in-person audience reactions. The resulting chaos in these debates is often at the expense of enlightenment 
the public about the candidates’ leadership abilities and political values. In short, entertaining the public eclipses the education of American voters.
Stewart notes that “When it comes to candidates on stage, more isn’t necessarily better, or even more entertaining. If anything, the near-constant interruptions of challengers vying for speaking time and attention can detract from not only the viewer’s enlightenment, but also their enjoyment. Because ultimately the live audience and those watching at home decide who they will follow through these debates, these events, or what replace them, should aim not only to entertain but also to educate viewers about the leadership qualities of the candidates.”
The audience decides relies on meticulous observational methods to consider the non-verbal behaviors of the candidates to establish mastery on stage and the response of the audience in person. These observable audience responses, in turn, affect reporters covering the debates as well as people watching at home, driving online searches based on a candidate’s debate performance.
Ultimately, Stewart proposes that the findings of The Audience Decides be used to evaluate and reconsider how debates, or alternatives to them, are structured to reveal the leadership traits and skills our leaders need in a world every even more complex. The resulting televised events should not only entertain, but also enlighten the most important part of representative democracy: the voting public.
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