Theresa May going to Prime Ministers Questions and to her statement on her letter triggering Article 50. Number 10/Flickr. Some rights reserved. In the United States, anyone seeking the office of president knows that while they are not constitutionally mandated to appear in televised debates, even a hint of refusal would be de facto political suicide and regarded as the highest form of contempt for the audience, namely, the American electorate.
The first Kennedy-Nixon shoot-out in 1960 drew an audience of 66 million. The opening 2016 Trump-Clinton debate was watched by 84 million and millions more on streaming platforms. The reach and impact of these televised gladiatorial contests, however imperfect, are now seen as a necessary democratic link between the prize of the kingdom of Washington DC and would-be rulers.
Yet, in the United Kingdom, despite the half-century stand-off between broadcasters and politicians ending in 2010 with the first live televised election debate, with the exercise repeated again in 2015, Theresa May has said ‘no’ to any live TV contest that would see her battle Jeremy Corbyn, Tim Farron, Nicola Sturgeon or any other party leader.
