What Went Down At The Fourth Democratic Debate

If you follow the hashtag #DemDebate on Twitter, you’ll find a series of approving or neutral remarks about how many black people are at the audience for this Congressional Black Caucus Institute co-sponsored debate (with NBC and YouTube). It also includes some tweets with highly racialized content. I’ve gotten a chance to report on every presidential race starting in 1996, and the level of vitriol around race, ethnicity, immigration and refugee status is the strongest I’ve observed since I started covering politics. Part of it is our moment in time, with disruptive innovation and globalization shaking up the economy and provoking anxiety and perhaps a nativist discourse. And part of it, I think, is the ease with which social media allows people to remain semi-anonymous in their most aggressive critiques or attacks. In some ways, Sanders and Trump both speak to a country with deep economic anxiety more directly and with claims that outsider status will provide fresh leadership. I think following the racialized #DemDebate feed is one important way to keep track of the range of perspectives — including on the fringe — that are influencing the center.