Presidential debates before radio and TV

Debates did not play a role in the nation's early presidential races. In fact, for most of the 18th century, any campaigning or direct appeal for votes was frowned upon by the public and newspapers. Historian Samuel Eliot Morison wrote that candidates "were supposed to play coy, obeying a call to service from their country, saving their energies for the task of government. Electioneering was done by newspapers, pamphlets, and occasional public meetings."

Remember that newspapers during this time were partisan organs run by political parties, and did not report objectively. Great orators were plentiful, but important debates were limited to the Congress where, absent today's committee structure, the issues of the day were eloquently discussed at length on the House and Senate floor. Presidential candidates were expected to keep quiet, and it was not until 1840 that a presidential candidate (William Henry Harrison of the Whig party) even stumped to advocate his own election. However, most credit Harrison's victory to the split in Democratic voters, not his campaigning.

Perhaps the most famous and studied debates of the pre-broadcast era are the senatorial debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas in 1858. Douglas agreed to the joint appearances only after Lincoln followed him around the state, making comments from the audience. These debates were, according to debate expert Lee Mitchell, the first debates with national significance. The debates were also considered a major success, as communications expert Kathleen Hall Jamieson wrote in her book "Presidential Debates": "They were orderly and closely attended. Both advocates were serious and articulate. They addressed themselves to a discreet set of political concerns. The debates advanced the issues, illuminating the areas of both agreement and disagreement."

The traditonal format of the debate, with no moderator or press panel, is also frequently lauded by debate experts. But as Jamieson has warned, candidates today likely would use the Lincoln/Douglas format to make a series of campaign speeches if there was no moderator present. The Lincoln/Douglas debates also were controversial because at that time, state legislatures still elected U.S. senators. The debates in front of voters who had no direct say in the election was seen by some as a violation of the spirit of the U.S. Constitution. The nation was intrigued by the Lincoln/Douglas debate topic (slavery) more than the actual Senate race, which Lincoln lost. The debates were followed nationally via newspapers and telegraph, but did not lead to a demand for more candidate debates. In fact, Lincoln did not debate once during his 1860 bid for president.