CFC 2
2022 — Lennox, SD/US
Public Forum Judges Paradigm List
All Paradigms: Show Hideif you get me in LD somehow god help you
(on a serious note just explain things well and everything will be okay)
Please be kind, provide your links, and crystallize. Please give me voters and don’t just go up and down your flow in final focus. This shows me that you understand what matters in the round and can put that in your own words. I generally vote on these last two speeches, and if I don’t, there’s been a critical error somewhere along the line.
Please do not tell me when to stop prep time. I will stop it when you show me you are ready to speak.
I don’t like gamesmanship. I don’t especially buy or like kritiks in public forum debate.
Debate fairly—with clash and roadmapping—and we will all have a good time!
- Debate background:
- Judged High school debate for (9 years);
- Assistant debate coach for 2 years.
2. Judging:
- I love flow and base my judgment on logical arguments, facts, science, etc.
- I deliberate on overall presentation of debaters-- i.e.-- argumentation + delivery
(she/they) Email: lauren.gilli03@gmail.com
(Pre-Round Skimming=Bold)
I have 4-years' debating experience in VPF (mainly trad/lay), various IEs, and 3 years at NSDA Nats for PF/Extemp (once somehow). If you have any questions before/after the round, ask! I like giving help and will give critiques when I can.
~Decorum~
- Don't be an [expletive] in round. If bad enough, give you the lowest speaks possible or the L :)
- I will not stand for prejudiced arguments/rhetoric. I will give opposing team the opportunity to continue, otherwise I will end the round with a fun chat and an L for the offending team, along with lowest possible speaks and a talk with coaches.
- Use trigger/content warnings please. If you have enough foresight to do that, I expect an alt prepared.
- Please no descriptions of sexual assault/in-depth anecdotes of such.
Basics
- Your job is to make my job easy.
- Keep a clear narrative throughout the round- overviews are nice and I love them done well.
- Speak clearly :)- stumbling is fine, I feel you. It doesn't mean you're any less confident.
- In PF, it's not policy- and in LD, stay understandable. No spreading please. If y'all are going way too fast, I will raise my hand.
- For Congress, spreading is absolutely contradictory to the point of the event. Please don't <3
- If, for some god-forsaken reason, you decide to spread against my warning, please send me a case doc. Email above.
- Debate is a competition, yes, but also respect the origins. The point of debate is to persuade, and you can't perform if you are spreading. If you are going too fast, I signal, and you don't slow down... I will flow what I can understand. You have been warned.
- - - I have four points about spreading. That is a sign.
- EVERYONE: SIGNPOST PLEASE <3
- Weigh for me, otherwise I'll do it myself (and that is a threat...mwahaha).
- I generally don't vote on obviously false args. Opposition, at least tell me it's clearly false, give a quick reason before moving on.
- As long as an argument is warranted, have fun with it! I like wacky args if the links are there.
First Speakers (PF)
- Please don't state Cost-Benefit Analysis (a la common sense) as FW in your case. It is useless unless it is used as a response to your opponent's FW.
- Give me (preferably only) voters in summary (collapsing/crystallizing) - again, makes my job easier - line-by-line is rarely summarizing and I will die on this hill. At least throw in voters at the end if you decide to not summarize in your summary
Second Speakers (PF)
- Your success in rebuttal rests on signposting. Tell me where you are! Please!
- For your partner's sake (and your own), start weighing in rebuttal
- Have fun with final focus because it doesn't matter much- The round is won in Rebuttal and Summary! Be sassy but stick to your guns- keep your narrative cohesive w summary
Crossfire/Ex
- It doesn't matter. Keep it clean, no punching. I don't flow during this time unless there is a mic-drop moment. If there is said mic-drop moment, bring it through in later speeches.
- I'm only here for the quotable moments
- finish answer if timer beeps, but not question
Evidence
- I have absolutely no tolerance when it comes to evidence violations. I have had bad experiences in round and will not let an abusive team win. If you want me to call for your/the opp's evi at end of round, tell me. Don't be afraid to stop the round and call a violation if they continue insisting on their evidence being something it's not.
Theory
Very limited experience, outside of a few rounds re: disclosure in LD and one in PF. If you run theory, be clear about your narrative and make it obvious why it should be preferred over substance.
Lincoln-Douglas
I am sorry, I have limited experience in LD judging. I'm teaching myself as much as I can starting '21. but please treat me as a lay judge. Spell it out please. I know next to nothing about LD, so be clear and explain thoroughly. Limit jargon- I competed a lot, but in a very traditional circuit. Glean what you can from the PF paradigm <3
_________________________________
This is debate! The point is to learn and meet people! In the words of my former debate coach, "Do your best. Have fun."
Hi folks!
My name is Kiah (she/her) and I graduated from Yankton High School (South Dakota) in 2021. I've mostly debated Lincoln-Douglas and Congress, but I have a tiny bit of Public Forum experience.
I debated traditional/lay debate throughout high school, so please keep that in mind going into round. I can handle speed to an extent.
Here is a list of things that make me :))) in rounds
1. SIGNPOSTING!!! it helps me as a judge when i'm flowing, and it should help you in round. you absolutely will get docked if you don't signpost.
2. extending the whole argument (claim + warrant) in every speech
3. warrants that you can actually explain tbh
4. evidence comparison (especially using author quals)
5. when you kick your F/W and turn their case (that’s spicy stuff)
6. in general if you teach me something that’s great!!!!
Here is a list of things that make me :'( in rounds
1. you have a captive audience in the round, so don't make the round unsafe for anyone (think the -ists and -phobias). if you do so in a manner that i think warrants it, i will:
a. drop kick u off the ballot
b. give u the lowest legal speaks
c. talk to ur coach
d. tell ur mom
2. when ur winning and u rub it in the other person’s face- that is rude stop. i will drop speaks if necessary.
3. don’t use other people’s oppression as a gimmick y’all the ballot isn’t worth it
ask me or email me if u want more info i’ll tell u how i feel about anything and i’ll give u time to change it if u need to :) holmstromkiah@gmail.com
Include me on the email chain: Rnold042302@gmail.com
Speed preferences (Please read):
PF: Should not be a policy speed, but a faster pace is ok as long as you are clear. It is still your job to make sure that you emphasize/slow down on the most important points you are making. Basically, if you want me to flow it, make sure its clear.
Traditional LD: Between pf and policy, National Circuit: See policy below
Policy: 6/10. I did policy for 3 years, so I'm exposed to spreading. However, I would still prefer not too fast of a round. This isn't a traditionalist preference, but more of a matter of general accessibility for me. You can still spread to an extent, but it needs to be comprehensible. I should be able to get your arguments clearly even without the email chain (Although I would like to be on the email chain). If I think you are being too fast or not clear enough, I will try to say clear, but it is still on you to emphasize and make sure I get your key points. Don't worry about this too much, just remember not to go too speedy.
General "TLDR" about me as a judge :
I did policy for three years and public forum my senior year, but I also have some experience with Lincoln Douglass. I am currently a student at University of Alabama.
I am most likely familiar with a wide variety of types of arguments you would likely run in the round, but don't assume you don't have to do the work to flesh out the arguments you present in the round well.
First and foremost- Run what you are best at. I'd rather see a good debate than what I prefer personally. This doesn't mean you have a free pass to run super bad args but don't feel like you have to completely fit the round around me.
I'm basically Tabula Rasa. Give me a framework/Framing and Ill go with it until it is refuted or dropped. That goes for aff and neg. I would say that I minimize my interference in the round and with my paradigm as much as possible, and when I do have to make decisions (especially on theory) I try to go with whichever debate norms presented (aff/neg) maximizes education in the round (I take into account impacts like accessibility, racism, discrimination, etc as a part of education, so don't shy away from these args in theory).
Policy Specific:
Case Debate: I will vote probably not vote on solvency or case-takeouts alone (unless there are link/impact turns read). neg still needs to extend offense, otherwise I'll probably be very open to Aff "if there's a 1% chance..." type arguments.
CP's- I default to sufficiency framing. The cp's viability as a winning argument (barring theory) is essentially a product of how much it resolves aff impacts and the magnitude of the net benefit. On neg, be clear on what the net benefit is and how the cp doesn't link. Also, if it is not 100% clear on the distinction between the cp and the plan, outline the differences for me. This makes it easier for me to resolve arguments on the perm debate level.
For AFF- Perms are the best, but I'm definitely open to other stuff. Theory is good too, condo, specific to the cp, etc., as long as it is warranted out and you provide me with how they violate the theory arguments. Multiple perms are generally ok-ish, but if they are fairly unique or if a perm is similar to a previous perm, you have to highlight the differences otherwise I'm lenient on allowing neg cross-applications of perm answers.
K's-
I am fine with critical debate on both sides, but I need the link story to be clear for me on the flow. Also, pleaseeeeeeee understand and effectively explain the alt. I need to know how the alt resolves the links, solves for the impacts outlined, etc. Too many affs let the neg get away with not explaining the alt well enough. Even if its not "vague", push neg on this.
K affs are definitely chill, you do you. But if neg pushes framework, make sure you have good answers to the TVA. It doesn't have to be a super in depth arg, but I should see something in the 2ac/1ar about why defending the resolution or a TVA of your K aff is bad. Also unless it strictly does not work with your K, please please please try to have some type of /alt/advocacy statement to act as a stable point for neg-testing.
On neg- I'm most familiar with the cap k and wildersonian afropess args, but you are cool to run whatever as long as you explain it well and make sure I understand the story of the K. Don't assume I know your lit. Also, you will likely need to reduce speed on these arguments given my likely unfamiliarity with the specific literature.
T- Default to competing interps but can be convinced otherwise. Also, on aff don't just say "reasonability". Reasonability also requires extension of a counterinterp or you must win we meet bc Reasonability means we meet a reasonable interp of the Resolution. It's not a wishy washy justification of tangentially topical affs.
Theory: I'm open to most all things, but a caveat: I'm not a big fan of generic wiki-based disclosure arguments (unless it is centered around some other impact like accessibility or taken in a critical direction). If I can tell you are just reading generic "Your aff wasn't listed on the wiki so you should lose" I'll listen to it but I will let you know I don't think its a great argument unless it is tied to deeper accessibility or fairness norms (i.e, tell me a story and give me meaningful impacts). You have to prove why this is a reason to drop the debater. Neg has a higher threshold for winning this than T in my eyes.
LD- I'm most familiar with traditional value-framework LD, but Plans are ok on more progressive circuits or if both debaters are ok with it (but then neg also gets full access to cps and K's). In traditional debates, I first decide which value is to be used in the round (based on arguments made), and then look to see which side maximizes that value. Dropping your framework is ok in my book if you can win under your opponents framework.
I'm also open to more critical arguments or circuit debate styles as long as general accessability to the debate is maintained for both debaters. However, If aff takes a traditional ld approach w/o a plan, neg needs to argue why they (the neg) should get conditional advocacies (this is definitely an uphill battle). For more info on my paradigm for progressive circuit ld style, see ^ for policy.
PF-
I default to hypo testing for public forum. The game is one of "resolution: true or false?" This is similar to what you're normally used to in pf so nothing mainly different. The key difference is that this isn't only just squo versus pro world, but instead a test of the resolution as a truth claim. Therefore, con can make arguments that aren't the squo as long as they don't read a specific plan or advocacy. I repeat, No plan statements or specified advocacies!
Please give me impact comparison in the final speeches (Time, magnitude, probability, etc) to help me do an effective cost-benefit analysis on the topic (if that is the framework of the round). I will also admit i'm a sucker for a story. Cohesive impact narratives are much easier to vote on than messy disconnected ideas.
Critical arguments are ok, but no alts/plans. Theory is also ok, but I'll admit personally I'm not a big fan of wiki disclosure based theory args (see policy section for more). That doesn't mean its not a viable option, just you need to show actual in round harms.
Other than that, have fun!
(Any questions on my paradigm? Feel free to email me or ask before the round begins)
Other Notes:
-Feel free to use all of cx even if you don't have more great questions. It's free prep for your partner. I won't dock speaks for this unless it is egregiously bad.
Hello debaters,
I approach debate with a focus on substance and argumentation, emphasizing the importance of clear communication and effective case development. Here are key aspects of my judging philosophy:
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Flow-Centric Evaluation:
- I prioritize the flow as the primary tool for decision-making.
- Debaters should clearly articulate and extend arguments throughout the round.
- I appreciate organization and signposting to enhance the flow.
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Impacts Matter:
- I give weight to well-developed impacts that are linked to the resolution.
- Impact calculus is crucial. Clearly explain why your impacts outweigh those presented by your opponent.
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Technical Proficiency:
- I value technical proficiency in debate. Solid understanding of debate theory and effective cross-examination will be rewarded.
- However, I do not automatically vote on theory. Make sure to connect theoretical arguments to tangible impacts on the round.
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Clarity and Signposting:
- Clear, concise, and organized speeches are key. Clarity in communication helps me understand your arguments better.
- Signpost consistently to help me follow your line of argumentation.
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Adaptability:
- I appreciate debaters who can adapt their strategy based on the flow of the round.
- Flexibility in argumentation and the ability to adjust to your opponent's arguments will be recognized.
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Framework and Weighing:
- Framework is essential for framing the round, but it should be applied in a way that enhances substantive clash.
- Effective weighing of impacts is crucial. Explain why your impacts are more significant in the context of the round.
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Disinclination towards Theory Arguments:
- I am not a fan of theory arguments. While I expect debaters to engage in substantive clash, relying heavily on theory arguments may not be as persuasive to me.
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Respect and Sportsmanship:
- Maintain a respectful and professional demeanor throughout the round.
- I don't tolerate any form of discrimination or offensive language. Such behavior will have a negative impact on your speaker points.
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Evidence Quality:
- Quality over quantity. Well-analyzed and relevant evidence will carry more weight than a flood of less meaningful sources.
- Reference your evidence appropriately and be prepared to defend its relevance.
Remember, this paradigm is a guide, and I am open to various debating styles and arguments. Adapt your approach to these guidelines, and feel free to ask for clarification on any specific preferences before the round begins.
Ann Tornberg has been a Debate coach for 35 years. She has coached Policy, Lincoln Douglas, and Public Forum in addition to coaching Speech and Oral Interp.
"I want to be persuaded in LD. I want to be able to evaluate the evidence based on a strong, reasonably paced delivery. Do not speed read in LD if you want high speaker points. As you summarize make sure that you are referring to evidence that has been read in the round. I do my best to take a careful flow. Give direction to your argument and always signpost. Let me know where I should put your argument on my flow. Finally, give me your estimate of the primary VOTERS in the round, but don't be surprised if I find other issues that are just as important to my decision." Ann Tornberg
I am a public forum judge...not policy. Organization and presentation are the keys to a winning round. Fast speaking will get you nowhere; and may cost you a round if the round is close.
Fancy jargon will not gain you any points, nor will nasty crossfires. I appreciate common sense, professionalism, and good grammar!
Just debate the resolution; be organized; have a good time; good luck.
LD--I value organization, common sense, and good speaking skills. Please don't try to baffle me with lots of jargon. Super-fast speaking may cost you the round. You will be judged on your case, attitude, and clarity of thought. Please don't spend the entire round debating value/criterion/framework or philosophy; your contentions count too!