Hillary, Biden, Obama gained most tonight. Edwards biggest loser. ... says focus group.

Real Time Response: Who’s Gained from Tonight’s Debate?
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The New Hamphire respondents studied in tonight’s dial test focus group provided insight into the candidates’ performance and their assessment of their ability to lead the nation. Hillary Clinton, Joseph Biden and Barrack (sic) Obama appear to have gained the most in tonight’s debate. Focus group respondents viewed Clinton favorably prior to the debate and felt even more strongly about her afterward, increasing her ratings by twenty-one points. Interestingly, there was not a gender gap in the response. Both men and women evaluated Clinton similarly and both groups proportionately increased their favorable evaluations of her.

Another successful performance was given by Biden who gained thirteen points and moved in the rankings from 6th to first place among tonight’s focus group participants. Biden received the strongest gain among women.

Obama received a slight bump in favorability ratings and sustained his ranking. Significantly, Obama gained the most from Independent voters.

Debates can harm voters’ perceptions of candidates as well. Expectations prior to the debate were that John Edwards, a candidate who ranked third in the mid-May national opinion polls, would perform well. Respondents’ opinion of Edwards decreased during the course of the debate by seven points and fell in the rankings among these respondents from third to the bottom two candidates of the race.

Dr. Rita Kirk and Dr. Daniel Schill - Southern Methodist University

http://www.wmur.com/realtimeresponse/13435363/detail.html

I wonder what they didn't like about Edwards.

I can get the Hillary and Biden bumps - i think they had the strongest performances. But I also think Edwards did quite well.

I guess you never know with some people.

I seriously mistrust this "instant ratings" BS.

NGU.

I work in market research. The instant feedback devices are great for testing jokes, sound bites, and other marketing minutiae. But to be of any use to a campaign, you'd have to do follow up interviews to see what "positives" also yield consumer retention numbers (that is, what ideas have real staying power in voters' minds).

Don't dis social science research methodologies just coz a malicious Republican happens to use them too.

He has lots on his mind. Have any of the others faced the loss of a child or a spouse with terminal cancer. She was there, tough and beautiful.

Looks like they are trying to derail Edwards. They know they are in trouble with him leading.

i was struck by it in the first and again here. In the debates he comes off as snotty.
i don't know why. i am not saying he is. it just comes off this way and the preception of it.
if he could work on it ...

It started with everyone using titles. He was the first to use a first name alone and he did it with Hillary. It was pretty disarming. It came across as if he was trying to assert dominance over the woman.
To their credit, everyone else jumped in to cushioned it for both of them and started using first names.

I'm glad you mentioned it. I worry that I can be a little hyper-sensitive about sexism, but there was something in the way he said it that really rubbed me the wrong way.

I admit that I may have been a little less sensitive to it if I felt like they had loosened the debate intentionally. And if they had started it off by using first name of one of the guys so that they didn't come off as trying to dominate anyone. I will also acknowledge a sense of defensive sexism in that.

But there definitely was definitely something about the way he said it that sounded self satisfied or something.

http://www.hillaryclinton.com/

She and, to a lesser extent, Giuliani are often referred to by their first names, even by their own campaigns.

During the debate, they started out setting a tone with a formal decorum.
At first they all referred to each other by title and last name.
He shifted it down by referring to the only woman by her first name.

The OP is about the focus group. I am just mentioning one little thing I noticed that I noticed and think may have contributed. Maybe we can simply agree to disagree and move on.

nt

Yep, they just want to put him in the sidelines since he is doing so well.

I figured as much.

Who knows how they were pre-screened.

and Joe Biden was hot to this group. The show host had to
ask about Hilary. No one else was mentioned.

Edwards seemed like he was trying too hard tonite to outdo Hillary and Obama. His passion was directed at them, not at the issues.

Hillary did just perfect.
And Biden showed the audience he has passion.

and I'd bet by the time we have to vote, WE ARE ALL going to be really really "debated" out!

I wonder how many there will be? For now, it's roller coaster time... but I guess those of us who follow politics all the time will discuss AND CUSS til the end. Talked to 3 different people today and NOT ONE OF them even knew there was a debate last night!!

America might just deserve what it gets, when so few people take the time to really "look" closer at ANY GIVEN candidate! Sound bites are about all most of them can handle!! Ain't That A Shame????