Yes I want to be on the email chain mattconraddebate@gmail.com. Pronouns are he/him.

My judging philosophy should ultimately be considered a statement of biases, any of which can be overcome by good debating. The round is yours.

I’m a USC debate alum and have had kids in policy finals of the TOC, a number of nationally ranked LDers, and state champions in LD, Original Oratory, and Original Prose & Poetry while judging about a dozen California state championship final rounds across a variety of events and the Informative final at NIETOC. Outside of speech and debate, I write in Hollywood and have worked on the business side of show business, which is a nice way of saying that I care more about concrete impacts than I do about esoteric notions of “reframing our discourse.” No matter what you’re arguing, tell me what it is and why it matters in terms of dollars and lives.

Politically, I’m a moderate Clinton Democrat and try to be tabula rasa but I don’t really believe that such a thing is possible.

Hello, I am an associate professor in the Journalism dept. at Cal State Northridge. I have a Ph.D. in political sociology and mass communication so I can say I am knowledgeable about U.S. and global political and cultural affairs, so don't try to talk about issues unless you truly understand inside out. I've taught college level news reporting for more than 15 years and worked as a newspaper reporter so I favor concise logic, brevity, facts, objectivity, simple common sense instead of puffery, empty promises, pompous speech. Make your points simply so even the 4th graders can understand. Importantly, I strongly dislike spreading. If you're going to simply read your case like 100 mile per hour speed hyperventilating so no one can understand, what's the point of standing up? I am a big fan of BlackPink (Rose), by the way.

A. I hate spreading.

A Case against Spreading in LD

B. I appreciate good turns.

What Exactly Is a Good Turn?

C. I judge you on 5 things.

5 Keys to Success