2008 Debates
There were three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate during the 2008 general election.
Courtesy Mark Abraham
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General Election Presidential Debate
John McCain (R), United States Senator (AZ) and
Barack Obama (D), United States Senator (IL)
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Date: |
September 26, 2008 |
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Location: |
The University of Mississippi |
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City: |
Oxford, MS |
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Time: |
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. Eastern |
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Sponsor: |
Commission on Presidential Debates |
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Moderator: |
Jim Lehrer, PBS |
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Topic: |
Foreign Policy and National Security |
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Viewership: |
52.4 million (Data provided by Nielsen Media Research) |
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Format: |
90-minute debate with candidates standing at podiums. Candidates questioned in turn with two-minute responses, followed by five minutes of open discussion between moderator and candidates for each question. |
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Pool coverage provided by: CBS |
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Joe Biden (D), United States Senator (DE) and
Sarah Palin (R), Governor (AK)
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Date: |
October 2, 2008 |
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Location: |
Washington University in St. Louis |
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City: |
St. Louis, MO |
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Time: |
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. Eastern |
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Sponsor: |
Commission on Presidential Debates |
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Moderator: |
Gwen Ifill, PBS |
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Topic: |
All Topics |
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Viewership: |
69.9 million (Data provided by Nielsen Media Research) |
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Format: |
90-minute debate with candidates standing at podiums. Candidates questioned in turn with 90-second responses, followed by two minutes of open discussion for each question. Ninety second closing statements. |
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Pool coverage provided by: CNN |
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General Election Presidential Debate
John McCain (R), United States Senator (AZ) and
Barack Obama (D), United States Senator (IL)
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Date: |
October 7, 2008 |
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Location: |
Belmont University |
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City: |
Nashville, TN |
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Time: |
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. Eastern |
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Sponsor: |
Commission on Presidential Debates |
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Moderator: |
Tom Brokaw, NBC |
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Topic: |
All Topics |
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Viewership: |
63.2 million (Data provided by Nielsen Media Research) |
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Format: |
90-minute town hall meeting debate. Candidates questioned by uncommitted voters identified by the Gallup Organization. In addition, moderator has discretion to include questions submitted online. Candidates questioned in turn with two-minute responses, followed by one-minute open discussion for each question. |
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Pool coverage provided by: CBS |
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General Election Presidential Debate
John McCain (R), United States Senator (AZ) and
Barack Obama (D), United States Senator (IL)
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Date: |
October 15, 2008 |
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Location: |
Hofstra University |
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City: |
Hempstead, NY |
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Time: |
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. Eastern |
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Sponsor: |
Commission on Presidential Debates |
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Moderator: |
Bob Schieffer, CBS |
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Topic: |
The Economy and Domestic Policy |
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Viewership: |
56.5 million (Data provided by Nielsen Media Research) |
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Format: |
90-minute debate with candidates seated at table with moderator. Candidates questioned in turn with two-minute responses, followed by five minutes of open discussion for each question. |
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Pool coverage provided by: ABC |
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