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"It may have been pronounced the most-anticipated Vice Presidential debate in history, but did last night's showdown at the podiums live up to the hype we'd hoped for? When Biden and Palin left the...\n\n[\n\n](http://blog.teenvogue.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/10/03/vp_debate.jpg)\n\nIt may have been pronounced the most-anticipated Vice Presidential debate in history, but did last night's showdown at the podiums live up to the hype we'd hoped for?\n\nWhen Biden and Palin left the stage, my friends and I walked away initially feeling a bit disappointed. Were we underwhelmed because both candidates emerged from the ring still intact? Because that defining gaffe or \"gotcha moment\" that everyone expected ultimately never came? Or maybe because, in this heyday of reality competitions and elimination shows like \"Survivor\" and \"American Idol,\" we've grown so accustomed to seeing a clear and triumphant winner emerge every week on TV that this seemed anticlimactic in comparison?\n\nI realized that what we were highly-anticipating was a debate which we actually had low expectations for, if that makes any sense. And what we got instead was something that's exactly in between: a middle ground, upon which both the candidates were able to stand.\n\nBut I think this may actually be more groundbreaking than it seems. Both candidates held their own. There was no smackdown moment. There wasn't some truly egregious mess-up or misspeak. And resultingly, maybe this will let Americans and the media focus instead on the actual issues they discussed: the agreements they made and disagreements they had on topics like gay rights, foreign policy, and the bailout plan. Better than honing all our attention on some petty talking point or silly negative sound-bite.\n\nAnd on that note, I hope you'll weigh in your thoughts on the debate in the comment section below!\n\n--LINDSAY TALBOT\n\nPhoto: NYTimes.com"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.teenvogue.com/story/the-great-debate>