To finish this series of bad ideas, David tries to persuade Gary Gerstle of the futility of televised leadership debates. From Nixon vs Kennedy to Harris vs Trump, do the voters really learn anything from these supposed exchanges of ideas? Are they ever much more than a competition to avoid gaffes? And what did British politics gain when it introduced prime ministerial election debates (apart from a brief attack of Cleggmania)?A new bonus bad idea is available to accompany this series: David talks to Lucia Rubinelli about what’s wrong with the idea of sovereignty. To get this and all our bonus episodes plus ad-free listening sign up now to PPF+ https://www.ppfideas.com/join-ppf-plusTo find out about our gift offerings for Christmas and beyond visit the gift page on our website https://www.ppfideas.com/giftsThe latest edition of the PPF newsletter is out now - sign up to get it every fortnight https://www.ppfideas.com/newsletters Next time: The Great Political Films resumes with Z (1969)Past Present Future is part of the Airwave Podcast Network Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices