Many students, much like the country’s general population, do not watch political debates. Instead, young voters flock to social media for their political news.
When Senate candidates Rep. Bill Cassidy, Sen. Mary Landrieu and political newcomer Rob Maness debate on campus later this month, voters may pay more attention to the social media posts after the debate than to the debate              itself.
“I think there are certainly a healthy segment of LSU student body that really enjoys politics and might tune in or at least watch highlights,” said assistant political communication professor Kathleen Searles.
Kayla Yarborough, kinesiology freshman, said she has never watched a political debate in its entirety and prefers watching clips online through social media resources because of her busy schedule. 
Searles said debate coverage has increased dramatically with the use of social media. People are able to share clips or blurbs from the debate through outlets such as Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr.
“There’s been some research that says by watching coverage of the debate that might be spun one way or the other on different networks, people might walk away with a very different impression of the candidate than they would if they had just watched the  debate,” Searles said.
A Facebook friend’s commentary on a debate, either positive or negative, has the power to give a different view than if the debate had been watched in full, Searles said.
“You probably get a more biased opinion because if someone posted a clip, it’s something they wanted someone else to see,” Yarborough said.
Civil engineering freshman Megan Corzo said she does not believe a voter can get the full picture by watching a clip of a debate.
“The best way to read a debate is to get the physical reading,” Corzo said. “They print it and they put it online.” 
Generally, debates don’t sway a voter’s decision. Instead he or she may become more excited about a candidate, Searles said. The debate may motivate the voter to donate to the campaign, talk to people about a candidate or volunteer.
Anthropology senior Alexandra Bessell said she believes debates can affect a voter’s decision.
“How somebody answers a question, especially the way they are able to present themselves and the way they are able to speak, says a lot about them as a person and their education background and their competency to think on their feet,” Bessell said. ”I think it should influence people.”
Corzo said watching debates made her look at candidates differently, but debates don’t change her vote, and she doesn’t believe it will change the decisions of others.
Searles said uniformed voters may be persuaded, but those voters are unlikely to watch the debate in the first place.
“Largely, people that tune into debates are people that have already made up their minds, people who are pretty politically active and engaged,” Searles said.
Searles said she is hopeful students will attend the Senate debate on campus Oct. 29.
“The candidates are literally coming here to speak to us and the broader audience,” Searles said. “I think for us not to be interested would be a real shame.”
WAFB Channel 9, Raycom Louisiana stations, local NPR station WRKF and LSU Student Government are sponsoring the Louisiana Senate debate between Cassidy, Landrieu and Maness.