Diverse Field of Debate Moderators Has Notable Absence

 

by Adam Howard

The 2016 slate of presidential debate moderators is a far cry from the all-white, all age 55-or-over crop of journalists who were deployed four years ago.

This year, NBC News Lester Holt will anchor the first presidential debate. Martha Raddatz of ABC News and Anderson Cooper from CNN will helm the town hall-style debate, while Chris Wallace of Fox News will anchor the third and final top-of-the-ticket face-off. Elaine Quijano from CBS News will moderate the lone VP debate and represent the first Asian-American to fill the role.

That roster, which is comprised of an African American man, two women — one of whom is Asian American — and a man who is openly gay appears to suggest that the non-partisan Commission on Presidential Debates has heeded recent calls for diversity. 

Moderators can have a significant impact on the content of a debate, as well as its tone and tenor. As a result, the makeup of the elite group of journalists who have a rare and high profile opportunity to pose questions to the next U.S. president before a national television audience is often deeply scrutinized.  

But not everyone is satisfied with this year's selections. 

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Source: NBC News