Paradigm

Jordan Press
NSU University School

My name is Jordan Press. I debated for 4 years at Cypress Bay High School, graduating in 2016. I was very active as a debater/judge/coach from 2012-2019. I now work at NSU University School as an educator and assistant coach.

jordan.press1998@gmail.com for email chains – also feel free to email questions.

POST EMORY 2025:I am sorry, but I no longer want to sit through any more bad K/frivolous theory/SPARK debates etc. Reading arguments to avoid doing real research and clash is antithetical to the purpose of Public Forum Debate. I can evaluate them, but I very much dislike the direction that PF is going. Read theory to check back real abuse. Other than that PLEASE read substance - my brain cannot tolerate going entire tournaments without hearing a substance round any longer.

The purpose of an email chain is to speed up evidence exchange, not to have the judge read off your doc during your speeches while you go incomprehensibly fast. I can flow most speeds but when PFers go fast they usually aren't clear, andif you aren't clear I can't flow. I don't want to flow off your doc. Prioritize being efficient over being quick. Also if you're going really fast I'm probably not flowing author names, so keep that in mind for extensions. The only time I look at evidence is if 1) there's an unresolved evidence dispute, 2) I feel like I'm forced to do so in order to make my decision (which means the debate was super messy/unclear), or 3) I'm curious

Back half strategy: I strongly prefer rounds where you make it clear to me what voting for you does. What does the Aff/Neg world look like and why is your world better? I want a clear, concise, cohesive, and crystalized narrative. Additionally, extensions require context and warranting that evolves around the events occurring in the round. The best rounds are the ones where debaters shape their extensions and warrants around the clash happening in the round instead of reading off a pre-written extension file. If you just tell me to “extend Smith” with no context, I probably won’t extend it on my flow. If you are going to read blippy card extensions in Summary/FF I am not the judge for you. Moreover, Depth > Breadth. I am much more likely to vote for a team extending 1 cleanly explained, weighed and fleshed out argument than a team extending 3-4 arguments that they are winning but are not explained in-depth in the back half of the round.

You should weigh early and often – it helps develop your narrative and helps me know what issues to look to first when filling out my ballot.

On Speaker Points – teams who do this stuff ^^ well will get higher speaks.

Defense isn't sticky. 2nd rebuttal needs to respond to 1st rebuttal.

I default to evaluating if I think the Aff or Neg world is better if I am not given judge instructions in the back-half.

My threshold for accepting responses to unwarranted arguments is really low.

I am generally tech over truth (this is a false dichotomy but w/e), but there is a threshold for offensive arguments. I will vote off ridiculous (in real world context) arguments if they are properly warranted, and easily not vote off things that are universal truths if they are not properly warranted. Warranting is key, which means it's generally much easier to have good explanations for real, truthful arguments anyways.

Progressive Arguments: By this point I'd say I'm decently comfortable evaluating theory and topical Ks. If your K is unusual or more dense (high theory/phil etc), you will need to overexplain and go slower, especially in the back half. I'm fine if you want to read a non-topical K but you'll need to overexplain even more. Ks and Theory weren't a thing when i was in HS so my beliefs are shifting as I learn and I have no preconceived notions on the args. I have literally 0 opinions on RVIs, IVIs, Ks, ROB, and Theory. You can shape my beliefs with the arguments you make in round, but I also would not expect a perfect evaluation of them.

On Disclosure specifically, I am pretty tab. I think there are both good and bad reasons for disclosure. However, if you email/upload to the wiki a giant block of text with no tags, highlighting or minimized text, my default interpretation is that you are not properly disclosed. At that point you are just being coy; either disclose or don't.

Tricks are a nonstarter.

TLDR;read what you want - if I don't understand it within the round, I won't vote on it.

In novice/middle school/JV rounds, I presume for the side I have to do the least work to find a voter for.

In Varsity/Nat Circuit rounds I presume Neg.

I don't care where you sit; if you stand while speaking, where you do crossfire, what you wear, etc. Do whatever makes you comfortable as long as I can hear you/your opponents.

Feel free to post-round me or ask questions – I want to help you learn and grow- just don’t be rude or belittling towards me and especially not towards your opponents. I am an adult; I can just leave if the conversation becomes unproductive. Yes, debate is a competitive activity, but even more importantly it is an educational one. Be good humans, don’t let your drive to win rounds cloud your judgement.

Most importantly have fun and good luck! If you have any questions feel free to ask before the round begins or email me.