Preparations for Presidential Debate reach final stages at Washington University

St. Louis, Mo., Oct. 16, 2000 -- Amid the clatter of hammers and saws, officials from Washington University and the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) updated reporters on preparations for the third and final Presidential Debate, to be held Tuesday, Oct. 17, in the university's Field House.

Speaking from the Debate Hall floor, where construction of the stage set is nearing completion, Washington University Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton noted that hundreds of people have put in long hours over the last week to transform the Field House into the nation's premiere "town hall." These include university and CPD staff as well as electricians, trades people, telecommunications workers and volunteers.

"You can see and hear that there is a great deal of activity ... at the Washington University Field House," Wrighton said. "We will be ready in time for the debate, even though it may not look like it right now. A lot of things remain to be done, but many members of the Washington University community have been working with great intensity to complete the last minute preparations that you see behind me."

Joani Komlos, media director for the CPD, briefed reporters on logistics of the "town hall" format, which is similar to one used during the 1992 and 1996 Presidential Debates. The candidates will be stationed at podiums but will be free to move through the audience of approximately 150 uncommitted voters. (The exact number of town hall participants is still being determined and probably will not be known until the day of the debate.)

Audience members were pre-selected by the Gallup polling organization and come from across the country. They are currently sequestered and their identities will remain confidential until the town hall meeting begins. Participants will submit questions in advance to moderator Jim Lehrer, though only Lehrer and the participants themselves will know the nature of those queries prior to the debate.

Komlos also reported that, on Oct. 17, the Debate Hall will be open to all media beginning at approximately 6 a.m. (following the final security sweep) and will remain open until 12:30 p.m., when it will close for candidate walkthroughs. The hall opens again, on an escort basis, to local affiliates between 4:30 and 7:15 p.m. but completely locks down (allowing no entry or exit) from 7:30 p.m. until after the debate is over. General access will resume once the candidates have departed, probably around 10 p.m.

Larry Giovanni, program manager for Southwestern Bell, said that the company's extensive preparations are proceeding well ahead of schedule. "We're probably about 300 lines ahead of where some of the other venues were ... and a good 50 percent ahead on our video feeds," Giovanni noted.

Mike Foley, set designer for the CPD, offered a brief tour of the debate hall and noted that construction includes not just the town hall set, but also numerous media risers and camera platforms as well as extensive rigging for lights and sound. Foley, who has been with the CPD since 1988, also pointed out that a similar floor-plan had been used in 1996 but had to be squeezed into a venue approximately one third the size of the Field House, thus making the current construction a comparatively straightforward task.

M. Fredric Volkmann, vice chancellor for public affairs at Washington University, informed reporters that shuttle service to the media parking lot on Oct. 17 has been extended in order to accommodate late broadcasts by affiliates from the west coast. Service will begin at 4 a.m. and will continue until 3 a.m. the next morning. (Shuttle service on Oct. 16 remains from 7 a.m. to midnight.)