CNN Radio News Day: October 22, 2012
CNN Radio News Day is an evening news program providing an informative, thoughtful and creative look at the day's events. It's posted Monday through Friday at 4:30 pm ET.
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(CNN) – Welcome to CNN Radio News Day.
Here are some of the stories we cover in today's edition:
- The third and final presidential debate is tonight. The focal point is foreign policy and it could be a decisive moment in the race. But there is another story hovering over this one – serious questions about how the debates themselves are run. Commission on Presidential Debates co-chair Frank Fahrenkopf:
"We pick the dates, we pick the locations, we pick the moderators and we pick the format without any consultation with the candiates."
The problem with presidential debates
By Lisa Desjardins, CNN
(CNN) – For 25 years, a private non-profit group of roughly a dozen people, operating without oversight, has been running America's presidential and vice-presidential debates.
To some, the Commission on Presidential Debates is a political hero, providing thoughtful stability and ensuring that U.S. presidential candidates do in fact debate each other. Multiple times. In a dignified setting.
But to its critics, the Commission is a small, secretive and closed-minded organization that colludes with the political parties, is out-of-touch with modern voters, and prevents third-party candidates from getting on the debate stage.
Among those critics is George Farah, founder and executive director of Open Debates:
[0:41] "In 1996 Ross Perot was running for president. Three-quarters of the American people wanted to see him and I thought it would be fascinating to see him debating again. And when he was shut out, I was astonished and I thought, who is doing this? What entity is making this happen?" FULL POST
