Carolina Kickoff
2022 — Greer, SC/US
Varsity Public Forum
Event Description:
NSDA Description: Public Forum Debate is audience friendly debate. You and a
partner will debate controversial issues that are "stripped" from the newspaper
headlines. A new topic will be announced the first day of each preceding month
at www.speechanddebate.org. A Public Forum Debate round begins with a flip
of a coin between the competing teams to determine your side and speaker
position. Public Forum will test your skills in argumentation, cross-
examination, and refutation.
This event is not sit-down Policy Debate or two-person LD. It should be far
more accessible to the lay public than those events. Debaters should be
rewarded for their ability to explain facts, policies, ideas, and issues in clear,
imaginative, and thoughtful ways. Excellent communication should be
rewarded, as should team members’ abilities to work together throughout the
round. While clash and conflict are both expected and required, contestants
must present their cases in a civil manner. Judges should award wins to the
pair who demonstrates superior overall persuasiveness.
NOTE: Both team members must be novices to compete in the novice division.
Both Novice and Varsity competitors will debate the following resolution: The United States Federal Government should substantially increase its investment in high-speed rail.