National Speech and Debate Tournament
2024 — Des Moines, IA/US
Matthew Davis Paradigm
Lincoln-Douglas
Lincoln Douglas Debate Judge Philosophy
Your experience with LD Debate (check all that apply)
Current LD coachFormer LD competitor
Summer LD instructor
Experienced LD judge
Former Policy debater
Speech coach
How many years have you judged LD debate?
24How many LD rounds have you judged this year?
41+What is your preferred rate of delivery?
7/91 = Slow conversational style9 = Rapid conversation speed
Does the rate of delivery weigh heavily in your decision?
NWill you vote against a student solely for exceeding your preferred speed?
NHow important is the criterion in making your decision?
It is a major factor in my evaluationDo you feel that a value and criterion are required elements of a case?
YRebuttals and Crystallization
Voting issues should be given:
Either is acceptableThe use of jargon or technical language ("extend", "cross-apply", "turn", etc.) during rebuttals:
Is acceptableFinal rebuttals should include:
BothVoting issues are:
Absolutely necessaryHow do you decide the winner of the round?
I decide who is the person who persuaded me more of their positionHow necessary do you feel the use of evidence (both analytical and empirical) is in the round?
9/91 = Not necessary9 = Always necessary
Please describe your personal note-taking during the round
I keep detailed notes throughout the roundDrops and extensions - There will inevitably be dropped arguments in a debate; however, just extending a drop and labeling it a voter without warrant is not going to win you the ballot. If you want an argument to have merit later on in the debate, you need to not only extend the argument (dropped or otherwise) and explain its significance for that point of the speech (1AR vs 2AR, etc).
Evidence extensions - please try to extend the argument and the evidence. If there is an author attached to an argument, extending the last name (or cross-applying where necessary) is helpful.
Theory - I'm not a fan, especially in LD. I will not buy disclosure theory - it does not level the playing field for small schools.
Rate of Delivery - If you are going to talk fast, there needs to be an email chain. However, even an email chain is not an excuse to be incoherent. I will say "clear" if you are talking too fast.Please be nice. Rude debaters don't often get high speaks from me and being mean or offensive will cost you the round.
Note: if you wish for your pronouns to appear the debaters you judge on text/email blasts, log into Tabroom, click Profile at top, and add them in the Pronouns field.