Spreading is the act of speaking extremely fast during a
competitive debating
Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a Discussion moderator, moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred ...
event, with the intent that one's opponent will be penalized for failing to respond to all arguments raised. It is a portmanteau of "speed" and "reading".
The tactic relies on the fact that "failing to answer all opposing arguments" is an easy criterion for judges to award a win on, and that speaking fast and fielding an overwhelming number of distinct arguments can be a viable strategy.
Spreading dominated the US school debate circuit in the 1990s. In the early 2000s, the style itself became a topic of many debates,
with some arguing that it was exclusionary and possibly discriminatory, as it focused on speaking fast rather than being impassioned about a subject, and some educational companies began selling debate prep materials to assist those employing the style in packing as many topics as possible into their arguments, creating an advantage for those with more money.
The
public forum debate
Public Forum debate is a widespread form of middle and high school competitive debate which centers on current events and relies on both logic and evidence to construct arguments. Invented in the US, Public Forum is one of the most prominent Americ ...
format was introduced in the early 2000s, with the intent of slowing speakers down by rewarding deeper arguments, and in 2016 the "Big Questions" format explicitly required a "conversational speaking speed and tone".
, spreading was described as still being "de rigueur" at
Lincoln–Douglas debate format
Lincoln–Douglas debate (commonly abbreviated as LD Debate, or simply LD) is a type of one-on-one competitive debate practiced mainly in the United States at the high school level. It is sometimes also called values debate because the format tra ...
events.
Senator
Ted Cruz
Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...
, who was a national debating champion in his student days, described spreading as "a pernicious disease that has undermined the very essence of high school and college debate".
Advocates of spreading argue the technique of spreading allows for a greater variety and depth of arguments to be introduced into a debate without lengthening the time of a debate, which in
policy debate
Policy debate is an American form of debate competition in which teams of two usually advocate for and against a resolution that typically calls for policy change by the United States federal government. It is also referred to as cross-examinat ...
are often longer than 2.5 hours.
See also
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References
External links
Video with examples of "spreading"
Debating
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