by Richard Prebble

Something momentous happened in the Multi-Party Debate.

A confused, mumbling Winston Peters, often a question behind.

Peters has been a force on television since 1975, when he featured in National’s election advertisements.

I debated him in televised leaders’ debates.

I recall a late-night television debate. Just Peters and me.

I was winning.

Then, while the camera was on Winston, I glanced at the studio monitor.

I realised something.

Winston looked much better on television than in person. The camera loved him.

Then, to my horror, what sounded like nonsense in the studio sounded good on television.

Peters speaks in coherent sentences but incoherent paragraphs.

In the studio, his arguments made no sense.

But television rewards the sound bite.

I was winning in the studio and losing on television.

The contrast with the man I watched in the Multi-Party Debate was startling.

This was not the Winston Peters I had debated.

This was an old man struggling to keep up.

It was painful to watch.

Peters’ performance and the media’s promotion of Qiulae Wong overshadowed another momentous event.

For the first time in any TV leaders’ debate poll, the ACT Leader was the winner.

TVNZ Vote Compass poll: David Seymour 24%, Wong 19%, Peters 9%.

Originally published on I've Been Thinking.