K.Bennett Judging Paradigms:

LD:

General:

Flex Prep is fine if all debaters agree

Roadmaps are preferred at the beginning of the speeches. I will not start your time until after the roadmap.

I place a high value on framing arguments.

You should do what you do best and in return I will do my best to adapt to your style and give the best decision I can at the end of the round. Remember this is your debate and you should do what you are most comfortable with.

Speed:

I prefer a slower round but if you spread do not sacrifice speed for clarity. I know spreading will happen so to ensure you get your speaker points slow down on taglines, authors, and provide summaries of your cards after you read them. If I cannot understand you, I cannot flow your argument. I will say “clear” two times before I stop flowing the argument. PLEASE SIGNPOST!!

Theory:

I prefer substance to theory unless there is clear abuse in the round

Kritiks:

In my opinion a K debate is good when it is well explained and contextualized. I catch on pretty quickly when arguments are explained well. Your arguments need to be coherent and well-reasoned. I like a K that has specific link arguments. I cannot vote on a K if I cannot understand the link arguments. Do not assume I am well versed in the literature/theory you are using.

Framework:

Framework is a great way to contextualize the round. Please explain your framework. Traditional framework cases should have a value and a value criterion/standard to weigh the value. I like cases that have a very strong link between the warrants, impacts, value and value criterion/standard. Highlight the impact and link back to the value structure and/or provide a clear weighing mechanism for the round. I prefer real clash to unwarranted ideas or ill linked impacts.

Arguments:

I am fine with most arguments as long as they are properly presented and explained, unless they are racist, sexist, heteronormative etc.

How I vote:

NR and the 2AR are the main speeches on how I decide my vote. Only give voting issues that have been extended through all speeches in the round and please be comparative. How does this outweigh the other side? Please use big picture voters. I will vote on the most weighted offense linking back to a pragmatic framework.

I am not big on technical wins. Just because your opponent drops an argument doesn’t mean you win the round.

Congress:

I like creative speeches. I rate good passionate persuasive speeches over a speech with tons of evidence. Please engage in the debate rather than reading another speech that presents points that have already been brought up by other students. I think it is good to act like a member of Congress, but not in an obnoxious way. Questions and answers are very important to me. Ask smart questions that advance the debate. Standing up to just ask a question just to participate will hurt you. I would rather you ask a few really good questions than a lot of mediocre questions. I like a P.O. who is fair and efficient. The P.O. has a very high chance of making my ballot unless they make several big mistakes and/or are unfair. The P.O. must keep a clear precedence list. If you think the P.O is not being fair, call them on it. The P.O. must have the basic knowledge of parliamentary procedures to run the chamber. If the P.O. is not qualified to run the chamber, they will not make the ballot.