![]()
Oct. 8, 2015
Emboldened by the ratings brought in by the Republican presidential debate, CNN plans to base the next Republican primary debate on the popular Hunger Games books, pitting presidential candidates against each other in a match of not policy, but survival.
“I think it’s very exciting,” said CNN’s Executive Vice President of programming Michael Bass. “There’s a real hunger out there, if you’ll pardon the pun, to see candidates facing each other head on and getting their hands dirty.”
CNN’s publicity department pointed to the success of their strategy in the last debate. “We has this plan, to get the candidates away from their talking points, get them talking to each other instead. We let that lead the debate, and it really worked. The viewers responded to it.”
The logistics of the Hunger Games debate have raised some questions, but CNN representatives have waved off concerns. “Nothing will be fatal,” CNN said in a written statement.
So far all the candidates, with the exception of Lindsey Graham, have accepted the format. Graham abstained, citing the dignity of the senatorial office, a concern that Cruz, Paul, and Rubio seem not to share. The only question that remains is whether all the candidates will fight in the same field, or if there will be two games staged. A New York Times article claims that CNN will allow all the candidates into the field, but that weapons and supplies will be awarded based on polling percentages. The article further suggested that donors will be allowed to purchase gifts for their favored candidates during the games.
Bass encouraged people to see the possibilities of this daring new format. “Who has the gumption to make it off the podium? Trump has succeeded in the business jungle — will he have the same success in the real thing? As a doctor, will Carson do no harm? If so, how does that reflect on his foreign policy choices? Is Fiorina the new Katniss? These are important issues to explore.”
Speculation has run rampant over what weapons the candidates will choose. A reddit thread called, “Trump with a bazooka oh yeah” held top ten status for three days running. The thread debated the candidate’s proficiency with various weapons as well as their opinions of the outcome. One reddit-user predicted that the games would turn into a Mexican Standoff.
CNN has received its share of criticism for the plan, namely from John Oliver of the comedy show Last Week Tonight and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In one segment, Oliver wrote the words ‘journalistic integrity’ on a piece of paper and then proceeded to rip it up.
However, the expectation is that the new format will see the highest ratings in CNN’s history and as Washington Post media analyst Sean It says, “In TV ratings are king. And if you want to talk policy, then you can say goodbye to your ratings.”
The way things are going, the upcoming debates are in no danger of that.
