Democratic Debate Mocked by Social Media as ‘Jerry Springer Show’

The 2020 Democratic primary is heating up, and so are the reactions to the debates on social media. On Tuesday night, the remaining candidates took the stage in South Carolina for a live debate aired on CBS. Many of those watching kept a live commentary going on Twitter, and it wasn’t pretty.

Viewers complained that the Democratic debate in Charleston, South Carolina was chaotic, hard to follow and even embarrassing to watch. Many compared to the candidates to reality TV stars like the Real Housewives, or even to guests on The Jerry Springer Show.

“These moderators need to get this under control. This is way worse than any bad day [at The View] hot topics table. At least Whoopi has the bell,” tweeted Meghan McCain.

“When did this turn into The Jerry Springer Show?” asked another person.

“This is an embarrassing [Democratic debate]. The audience sounds like a WWE crowd,” wrote Jackee Harry. “Gayle King, please pull a Whoopi and gather these folks.”

A lot of the backlash was aimed at the CBS News moderators, particularly Gayle King, who is still recovering from the outrage over her mention of Kobe Bryant’s sexual assault case soon after his death. However, some viewers also called on the candidates themselves to show more “dignity” and stop talking over one another.

Finally, there was additional controversy over the ticket price to get into the debate. The cost of admission ranged from $1,750 to $3,200 per seat, and many people questioned why the Democratic National Convention allowed the prices to rise that high, saying it inherently favored wealthier voters.

In the end, a few messages stood out from the chaotic debate, however hard they might have been able to hear within the chaos. According to CBS News poll, the “most memorable moment of the night” among those asked was a message of unity from Amy Klobuchar, who said that if the Democrats “tear each other apart,” President Donald Trump will win re-election in 2020.

Behind that, the next stand-out quote for viewers came from Senator Bernie Sanders, who said that the economy is working great “for billionaires” right now, but it needs to work for everyone. After that was Sen. Elizabeth Warren saying that Michael Bloomberg is the “riskiest” candidate on stage.

Finally, many viewers were also left with a strong impression from former Vice President Joe Biden, who complained about the disorganized debate and said he was going to talk over people if he had to. However, Biden was also mocked on social media for misspeaking throughout the debate, at one point saying he was running for the Senate, not the presidency.

The next Democratic debate takes place on Sunday, March 15, and will be aired live on CNN.