Democratic Theory Volume 9, Issue 1, Summer 2022: 1–30 doi: 10.3167/dt.2022.090102 ISSN 2332-8894 (Print), ISSN 2332-8908 (Online) Televised Election Debates in a Deliberative System The Role of Framing and Emotions Emma Turkenburg Abstract: Are televised election debates (TEDs) a blessing for democ- racy, educating citizens and informing them of their electoral options? Or should they be viewed as a curse, presenting superfcial, manipulating rhet - oric in one-way communication? In this article, I evaluate TEDs from a de- liberative point of view, focusing on the potential positive and negative out- comes of framing by politicians, as well as on the pros and cons of displaying emotions in debates. I argue that the use of these two rhetorical devices in TEDs is potentially helpful in inspiring deliberation, perspective-taking and subsequent refection in both politicians and voters. This leads me to conclude that televised election debates should be critically approached as communicative venues with potential deliberative qualities. Keywords: communication, deliberation, election debates, refection, rhetoric Political discourse in general, and election debates specifcally, face cri- tique (Coleman 2020; Marien et al. 2020). Often-heard remarks include that these debates are just for show, have limited substance, and only consist of politicians trying to bash each other and “score points” with hollow phrases and simplifcations (ADRWG 2015; Coleman 2000; Walzer 2007; Zarefsky 1992). These critiques raise several doubts about the mer- its of televised election debates (TEDs). In a healthy electoral democratic system, actively engaged, informed citizens make reasoned choices and subsequently voice their opinions by means of voting and possibly other forms of participation (e.g., Leeper and Slothuus 2018). If debates were just for show and aimed at getting the most attention, rather than in- forming and enabling the voter to make reasoned choices, would they still be benefcial for representative democracy? One could argue TEDs do more harm than good, leading people to not take politics seriously, doubting representation, and consequently tuning out and not turning Democratic Theory 9-1 Summer 2022.indb 1 5/19/2022 9:04:43 AM This article is available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license thanks to the generous support from a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.