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DU Home » Latest Threads » Forums & Groups » Main » General Discussion (Forum) » Wouldn't it be nice if Am...

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:28 AM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

Wouldn't it be nice if Americans' need for instant gratification got a bit of an adjustment?

There really should be NO nationwide race results broadcast until polls close in Hawaii

Anyone else agree?

State/local results? Sure. But the rise of the 24-hour news channels has spoiled people and those same news channels push to claim this or that first so they can garner more ratings

33 replies, 1093 views

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Arrow 33 replies Author Time Post
Reply Wouldn't it be nice if Americans' need for instant gratification got a bit of an adjustment? (Original post)
 Roland99 Oct 2020 OP
LineReply I agree. I remember the Carter/Reagan election in 1980 where they called it around 9:00 pm
 catbyte Oct 2020 #1
LineReply TV created this situation
 Wicked Blue Oct 2020 #2
LineLineNew Reply You mean radio created this problem...
 Drunken Irishman Oct 2020 #25
LineReply It's the news media that drive this, not the voters
 FakeNoose Oct 2020 #3
LineLineReply As a voter I disagree.
 Codeine Oct 2020 #16
LineLineLineNew Reply They can't announce the winner when they don't know
 FakeNoose Oct 2020 #27
LineLineLineLineNew Reply They can certainly announce states.
 Codeine Oct 2020 #29
LineReply Why?
 Codeine Oct 2020 #4
LineLineReply Because it can act as a suppressant to states where polls are still open
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #7
LineLineLineReply There is no nationwide race.
 Codeine Oct 2020 #9
LineLineLineLineReply president is a nationwide race
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #14
LineLineLineLineLineReply No. It's 50 statewide (plus a few extra) races. nt
 Codeine Oct 2020 #15
LineLineLineLineLineLineReply nationwide position
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #17
LineLineLineLineLineLineLineReply And yet every race is individual and separate.
 Codeine Oct 2020 #18
LineLineLineLineLineLineLineLineReply you're completely missing the point
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #19
LineLineLineLineLineLineLineLineLineNew Reply Because your premise is inherently flawed.
 Codeine Oct 2020 #26
LineLineLineLineLineLineLineLineLineLineNew Reply ok, sure
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #28
LineLineLineLineLineReply It isn't -- we have zero national races
 obamanut2012 Oct 2020 #20
LineLineLineLineLineLineReply national implications. Why is no one getting this?
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #22
LineLineLineReply That's a myth.
 TwilightZone Oct 2020 #13
LineLineLineReply not true
 obamanut2012 Oct 2020 #21
LineLineLineNew Reply Is there empirical evidence
 Codeine Oct 2020 #30
LineLineLineLineNew Reply not on a scale of half the country but there are valid concerns that have been raised for 40 yrs
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #32
LineLineLineLineLineNew Reply 2000 was straight up theft
 Codeine Oct 2020 #33
LineReply The only reason I want to know that my vote has been counted, is because
 Baitball Blogger Oct 2020 #5
LineReply Isn't it illegal in other countries to call a winner before the polls close?
 Lars39 Oct 2020 #6
LineLineNew Reply They're calling the winner for states
 Codeine Oct 2020 #31
LineReply This need for instant gratification has to stop RIGHT NOW!!! n/t
 Silent3 Oct 2020 #8
LineLineReply LOL.
 Statistical Oct 2020 #10
LineLineReply .
 WhiskeyGrinder Oct 2020 #12
LineReply The need for instant gratification is why so many American me suffer...
 SKKY Oct 2020 #11
LineReply Why Hawaii and not Alaska, whose polls close at 1am ET?
 Drunken Irishman Oct 2020 #23
LineLineNew Reply wasn't aware they were open that late. then by all means
 Roland99 Oct 2020 #24

Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:35 AM

Star Member catbyte (28,749 posts)

1. I agree. I remember the Carter/Reagan election in 1980 where they called it around 9:00 pm

that tanked things 2 hours before the polls closed out west. Hawaii and Alaska, to a lesser degree, must feel like second class citizens, even though the outcome in both states are no big surprises. But I must admit I was selfishly elated in 2008 when they announced Barack Obama the 44th President of the United States at 11:00:01 EST. I could go to bed happy and not be bleary-eyed at work the next morning.

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:37 AM

Star Member Wicked Blue (4,343 posts)

2. TV created this situation

We've come to expect instant information about anything and everything. And Twitter has made it worse.

The broadcast stations race to beat each other with the latest updates and whip the viewing audience into a frenzy. To them viewership is more important than reporting responsibility.

If Joe wins and we take the House and Senate, I'd like to see some changes mandated by the FCC. And the Fairness Doctrine restored. Broadcasters must be made to realize that their broadcast licenses carry responsibilities that go beyond ratings and advertising revenue.

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Response to Wicked Blue (Reply #2)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 12:04 PM

Drunken Irishman (34,857 posts)

25. You mean radio created this problem...

 

Because calling races early has been going on long before tv. When FDR beat Hoover, the radio programs announced his victory before polls had even closed in Hoover's home state.

Here's a good segment on it:

https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2020/09/14/radio-diary-how-americans-came-to-expect-fast-election-results

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:38 AM

Star Member FakeNoose (23,726 posts)

3. It's the news media that drive this, not the voters

I'd say most of us Baby-Boomers can remember the days when election results were announced in the newspapers on the next day, and sometimes later.



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Response to FakeNoose (Reply #3)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:13 AM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

16. As a voter I disagree.

 

I don’t need information withheld for “my own good.” I want to know how the votes are breaking as they come in. It isn’t 1960, and there’s no need to pretend that it is.

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Response to Codeine (Reply #16)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 12:19 PM

Star Member FakeNoose (23,726 posts)

27. They can't announce the winner when they don't know

I guess it goes without saying. There's nothing worse than watching these political pundits all trying to stretch out the time because they don't have the results yet.

The worst thing they can do is call it for the wrong candidate.

I don't have a problem with going to bed not knowing who won. But I do have a problem when I'm told the wrong person is the winner. Remember what happened to Al Gore?

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Response to FakeNoose (Reply #27)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 01:07 PM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

29. They can certainly announce states.

 

And Al Gore did win. The problem wasn’t election night coverage.

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:41 AM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

4. Why?

 

Withholding information just for the sake of it? Because we’re spoiled?

Not seeing the upside.

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Response to Codeine (Reply #4)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:01 AM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

7. Because it can act as a suppressant to states where polls are still open

It treats them, as someone mentioned above and with which I agree, as second-class citizens.

Calling a nationwide race for president while multiple states are still actively voting is quite a disservice

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #7)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:21 AM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

9. There is no nationwide race.

 

They call state races as they become clear. If your state hasn’t closed then your race is still to be determined.

And only an idiot decides not to vote based on results elsewhere. You still have other races on your ticket. Anyone dumb enough to avoid voting because Florida got called an hour after their polls closed probably shouldn’t be voting anyway.

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Response to Codeine (Reply #9)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:53 AM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

14. president is a nationwide race

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #14)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:11 AM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

15. No. It's 50 statewide (plus a few extra) races. nt

 

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Response to Codeine (Reply #15)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:24 AM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

17. nationwide position

the president isn't president over states east of the Mississippi

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #17)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:28 AM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

18. And yet every race is individual and separate.

 

The outcome of one has no bearing on that of another.

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Response to Codeine (Reply #18)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:44 AM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

19. you're completely missing the point

wonder why

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #19)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 12:14 PM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

26. Because your premise is inherently flawed.

 

You’re just wrong.

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Response to Codeine (Reply #26)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 12:19 PM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

28. ok, sure

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #14)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:48 AM

Star Member obamanut2012 (22,786 posts)

20. It isn't -- we have zero national races

The Electoral College makes it a fifty-state race, not a national one.

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #7)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:43 AM

TwilightZone (21,191 posts)

13. That's a myth.

The presidency isn't the only race on the ticket and there's no evidence that early calls in some states affect other states. If it were true, turnout in blowouts would be much lower in western states, and that's not the case. Look at Reagan/Mondale, which was called about 30 seconds after polls closed in the east.

Besides, the presidency isn't really a nationwide race. It's a series of state and territory races. It's only called when enough states with enough electoral votes are called.

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #7)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:49 AM

Star Member obamanut2012 (22,786 posts)

21. not true

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #7)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 01:09 PM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

30. Is there empirical evidence

 

that announcing state totals from one half of the country suppresses votes in the other?

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Response to Codeine (Reply #30)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 01:15 PM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

32. not on a scale of half the country but there are valid concerns that have been raised for 40 yrs

https://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1048&context=ylpr


https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/it-right-report-results-polls-close
Moreover, after the knotted 2000 results, the TV networks and the Associated Press have been rightfully cautious in making Election Night projections. I am hard pressed to see why walling off the exit-poll analysts from the network news teams on Election Day has undermined journalism or anything else.

I agree with Issenberg that voters should understand how presidents interpret their mandate. But I am baffled why voters need to have that information -- on a precinct-by-precinct basis -- at 2:38 on the afternoon of Election Day. The data analysis from VoteCastr will be just as valuable to voters, political scientists and campaign professions on the morning of November 9.



And do you not recall the confusion (and partly justifying legal actions) the back and forth in FL caused in 2000?

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Response to Roland99 (Reply #32)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 01:21 PM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

33. 2000 was straight up theft

 

aided and abetted by incompetence. Media calling races one way or the other is irrelevant. Should a state be called while poll are open in that state? No, obviously that impacts voters. But what some hillbillies in Arkabama decide will not, and should not, impact my vote on the West Coast.

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:43 AM

Star Member Baitball Blogger (42,029 posts)

5. The only reason I want to know that my vote has been counted, is because

I assume there's less chance of someone in the county office to open the absentee ballot and swap ballots.

I just think it's odd that they aren't showing that it has been counted, when I dropped it off on the 13th. Didn't they start counting them on the 19th?

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 09:43 AM

Star Member Lars39 (25,127 posts)

6. Isn't it illegal in other countries to call a winner before the polls close?

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Response to Lars39 (Reply #6)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 01:10 PM

Star Member Codeine (25,586 posts)

31. They're calling the winner for states

 

that have already closed. Enough of those results come in and the outcome is clear.

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:02 AM

Star Member Silent3 (12,249 posts)

8. This need for instant gratification has to stop RIGHT NOW!!! n/t

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Response to Silent3 (Reply #8)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:23 AM

Statistical (19,264 posts)

10. LOL.

Nice one.

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Response to Silent3 (Reply #8)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:25 AM

Star Member WhiskeyGrinder (16,486 posts)

12. .

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 10:24 AM

SKKY (10,352 posts)

11. The need for instant gratification is why so many American me suffer...

...from pre-mature e.... Um. Never mind.

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Response to Roland99 (Original post)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 11:57 AM

Drunken Irishman (34,857 posts)

23. Why Hawaii and not Alaska, whose polls close at 1am ET?

 

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Response to Drunken Irishman (Reply #23)

Wed Oct 21, 2020, 12:04 PM

Roland99 (52,601 posts)

24. wasn't aware they were open that late. then by all means

the following morning isn't going to change anything if that's when we all learn the results.

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