Oct. 22, 2012 Campus Events Day-long debate events planned on campus
The campus will take on a red, white and blue hue; Events not open to the public
Oct. 22-23 To celebrate the final presidential debate at Lynn University, the campus has scheduled several media events. See the full list below.
Monday, Oct. 22
10:30 a.m. – Student ticket holders, stand-ins and faculty experts available for interviwe
- Meet in Perper Plaza (ask a volunteer for directions if needed).
- Several of Lynn’s faculty and student experts, including ticket holders and stand-ins, will be available for media interviews at this time. See our complete list of faculty experts onhttp://debate2012.lynn.edu under “Media Kit.” Student experts (both international and domestic) will be available discuss topics including politics, the election and social media.
11 a.m. – Google Hangout #3, International Students
- Lynn Vice President for Enrollment Management speaks with international students about differences or similarities in democracy and politics in their home countries and the United States and how #lynndebate has affected their view of the American political system. Visit Lynn’s Google+ page to RSVP for the hangout and watch it live.
11:30 a.m. – Outside the fence campus tour
- Meet in Perper Plaza (ask a volunteer for directions if needed).
- This will be an opportunity to learn more about the campus’s buildings, school history and plans for growth. The tour will provide reporters with background information about the school as well as answer questions related to the school’s history, student body or other aspects of campus life at Lynn. Tour stops will include the soccer field where Lynn’s “Red, White and View” debate viewing party will take place and Lynn's social media lounge.
1 p.m. - Google Hangout #4, Social Media and the Election
- Daniel Sieberg from Google joins Lynn students covering the debate with social media to discuss the impact of social media during this election cycle. Visit Lynn’s Google+ page toRSVP for the hangout and watch it live.
12 - 5 p.m. - Red, White and Pool Party
- The Lynn University pool.
- Students will gather for a pool party with a live band, The Resolvers, water orbs on Trinity Lake, tropical drinks, free food and giveaways.
12 - 5 p.m. - Red, White and Point of View: The Causeway
- East of the Lynn University pool.
- There will be a causeway where university groups and local community organizations can display information about their causes. Groups include: Lynn University College Democrats, Lynn University College Republicans, Lynn University Debate Team, C-SPAN, AARP and others.
5 p.m. - 12 a.m. - Red, White and View: Debate Viewing Party
- Lynn University soccer field.
- The students not lucky enough to score a ticket for tonight's debate, will gather on the soccer field – just steps away from the Keith C. and Elaine Johnson Wold Performing Arts Center where the presidential candidates will debate a variety of topics related to foreign policy. The evening will feature live entertainment, gourmet food trucks, giant outdoor screens for viewing the debate and an exclusive South Florida style "Knight Club." AARP is the title sponsor of the viewing extravaganza.
Tuesday, Oct. 23
10:30 a.m. - Press conference with President Ross (the 6:30 a.m. briefing is cancelled)
- Meet in front of the flags adjacent to Military Trail.
- Lynn University president, Kevin M. Ross, will provide a recap of the debate day and night events at Lynn at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 23—the morning after the final presidential debate. The press conference will happen in front of Lynn’s famous flags near the Military Trail entrance to campus.
Lynn Facts Hosting a debate is a big project, but how big? The debate by the numbers.
Everyone agrees that holding a debate is a massive undertaking. But just how massive, the following are some numbers that help tell that part of the story.
- How many tables: 1,209
- How many chairs: 1,567
- How many tablecloths: 868
- How many workstations in the media room: 600+
- How many TV screens: 42 in the media filing center
- How many miles of telephone lines: 1,300 lines
- How many feet/miles of cables: 70 miles
- How many buntings / flags in media room and spin alley: 90
- Cost of hosting the debate: $4.9 million
For additional information, please contact the media relations office at 561-237-7967 to coordinate an interview.
The five things you may not know about Lynn University
- At 50 years old, we’re the youngest university to host a presidential debate.
- Lynn University is across the street from where IBM invented the first PC. Lynn students even helped IBM test their prototype keyboards.
- Lynn had seven freshwater lakes, but filled one as part of our hosting of the debate. We now call it ―Lost Lake Slutsky in honor of the Marty Slutsky, producer of the debate.
- We are home to a world-class Conservatory of Music, one of only 12 in the country that attracts some of the most gifted young musicians in the world.
- The school started as a Catholic school for girls—part of the Marymount system.
For more information, please contact the media relations office at 561-237-7967.
Additional Stories Social Media Lounge
Lynn ranks as one of the top 50 social media colleges in the nation
Oct. 20-23 Given the importance of social media to the 2012 election and Lynn’s dedication to the medium as a top social media college, the university will have a Social Media Lounge for students, staff and faculty to share stories throughout debate weekend.The Lounge, which will help promote Lynn’s social platforms including Tumblr, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, foursquare, Instagram, Flickr, Google+ andblogs.lynn.edu, is open throughout debate weekend and will close Tuesday, Oct. 23. The lounge is centrally located in the current Center for Learning Abroad Office in the lobby of Lynn’s Student Center. Please ask a volunteer to show you to the Lounge.
For more information, please contact the media relations office at 561-237-7967.
Photos and videos for student stand-ins available for download
Lynn students were stand-ins for Obama, Romney and Schieffer
Yesterday, three Lynn University students: Eric Gooden (as Barack Obama), A.J. Mercincavage (as Mitt Romney) and Andrew Lippi (as Bob Schieffer), were stand-ins on the debate set for the national networks to test sound and lighting. The students were chosen based primarily on physical similarities (height and skin coloring) to the candidates and the moderator.
Sharing videos and images
Media can download high resolution photos of the student stand-ins at http://debate2012.lynn.edu/photos. Video from the stand-ins are also available for download via Lynn’s online media kit (http://debate2012.lynn.edu/media-kit/). Scroll down to “Multimedia Assets” and click on “Student Stand-ins.”
More on the stand-ins
- Eric Gooden (Obama stand-in) – Gooden is a 24-year-old junior majoring in criminal justice at Lynn University. He serves as the Vice President of the College Democrats.
- A.J. Mercincavage (Romney stand-in) – Mercincavage is a 23-year-old senior majoring in multimedia journalism at Lynn University. He serves as a resident assistant and is a blogger for the university.
- Andrew Lippi (Scheiffer stand-in) – Lippi is a 22-year-old junior majoring in American studies at Lynn University. He works in the university’s Office of Admission.
For more information, please contact the media relations office at 561-237-7967.
Lynn University produces special coin to be flipped for presidential debate
Knowing that the flipping of coins and drawing of straws are important parts of hosting a presidential debate, Lynn University decided to produce a special coin just for the event. Only 250 of these unique coins were minted. Images are available at http://debate2012.lynn.edu/photos. For more information, please contact the media relations office at 561-237-7967.
Which tie to wear? Presidential debates show clear trends in necktie preferences
Last debate at Hofstra did buck the trend though
Presidential debates are famous for their catch phrases and game changing moments, evidence Al Gore’s “lock box,” George H.W. Bush’s checking his watch and Ronald Reagan’s “There you go again.”
Candidate neckties have received much less focus, even though they have been worn 42 times since the period of regular debates began in 1976. Since then, several clear trends have emerged, especially during the more recent red state vs. blue state era.
Lynn University shows that red has become the necktie color of choice in recent years. In fact, since the Bush-Gore debates of 2000, red or predominantly red neckties have won out at the debates in something of a necktie landslide; red ties have outnumbered blue ties 15 to 7.
Ties worn during presidential debates:
- Red ties: 15
- Blue ties: 7
- Green ties: 1
- Bowties: 0
To be completely fair, not all of those red ties have been solid red. Some have been red with a slight pattern. And in 2008, both John McCain and Barack Obama wore red ties with white stripes: Obama in the second debate that year and McCain in the third.
Interestingly, Mitt Romney changed things up a bit in the last debate at Hofstra University on Oct. 16. He wore a blue tie with a pattern. Obama wore a red tie, keeping with the tradition. The combined effect was interesting since they ended up wearing a tie sporting the official color of the opposing party.
The information provided by Lynn does not include necktie colors from the infamous 1960 presidential debates, which were viewed throughout America on black and white television sets. Presidential debates did not take place in 1964, 1968 or 1972, but they resumed in 1976 with three debates between Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. Five of six ties worn that year were red or mostly red. Carter wore a blue tie with a pattern for the first debate.
With so many necktie colors to choose from, it’s striking that so few ties of other colors have ever been worn. Consider the case of the lowly green tie: the only candidate in modern times to wear a green tie during a presidential debate was Bob Dole, who wore it during his second debate with Bill Clinton in 1996.
And despite its popularity among some inside-the-Beltway types, one style of tie, the bowtie, has yet to make its first appearance on a candidate at a presidential debate. Insiders are betting that streak will likely continue in 2012.
For more information, please contact the media relations office at 561-237-7967.
Lynn University, site of the final 2012 presidential debate to be held on Oct. 22, 2012, is an independent, co-ed, residential university offering an innovative undergraduate and graduate curriculum built on individualized attention and an international focus. Founded in 1962, we’re an emerging higher education institution preparing to celebrate our 50th anniversary and hosting the final 2012 presidential debate is the perfect way to show the world what Lynn is all about. The university currently enrolls more than 2,000 students representing nearly all 50 U.S. states and more than 80 nations in five academic colleges and three specialty programs. Visit Lynn's debate website, debate2012.lynn.edu, for more information on Lynn debate-related news and events. |
