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A Functional Analysis of 2004 Taiwanese Political Debates

This investigation utilizes the Functional Theory of Political Campaign Discourse to analyze the first-ever televised presidential debates in Taiwan in 2004. Millions of people watch, and learn from, political debates, which are an important part of many political campaigns around the world. Overall, acclaims and attacks were the most common functions, followed by defenses. Policy was addressed more often than character in these debates. The incumbent candidate acclaimed significantly more and attacked less than the challenger. The incumbents used past deeds significantly more often to acclaim—and less to attack—than the challengers. Finally, general goals and ideals were used more as the basis for acclaims than attacks in these debates. Implications of these results are discussed.