I’ve been enjoying the volume of coverage in the Guardian about Mitt Romney’s propensity to use zingers in the upcoming/ongoing/2012 (delete as applicable) presidential debates. Since 30th September there have been four articles mentioning them, with two of these featuring ‘zingers’ in the headline:
– Obama v Romney: tense US presidential debate looms, 30th September
– Romney’s zingers are well-rehearsed. What could possibly go wrong?, 1st October
– Romney gets off the ground in a presidential debate light on zingers, 4th October
– Romney and Obama both struggle with style and substance during first debate, 4th October
If you haven’t been following, it started when attention was bought to Romney’s penchant for zingers, highlighting that he was not taking their usefulness lightly:
Much mockery greeted a report in the New York Times that Romney, a man not renowned for his successful attempts at humour in public, had prepared “a series of zingers that he has memorised and has been practising on aides since August”.
But sadly, he failed to deliver:
In the end there were no zingers
Although apparently it’s not just Romney who needs to ensure his zingers are up to scratch:
When it comes to zingers, lies and body language, first face-off shows both candidates have room for improvement
I look forward to following the rest of the US presidential race through the frequency and severity of the candidates’ zingers.