By John Surico, GQ
This story originally appeared on GQ.com: How to Watch the Debates: The Networks, The Blogs and the Audiences
Whether it was in front of a TV, computer, or radio, more than 70 million people settled in to watch that first presidential debate between a floundering Obama and a resuscitated Romney in Denver. An audience like that hasn't been seen for a first electoral showdown since the Carter/Reagan debate of '80 -- one can assume rough economic times spell big numbers for ratings.
Like any episode post-cliffhanger, everyone wants to find out what happened and what will happen next. In this case, all those questions (or some of them, at least) will be answered, in town hall format, at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., on Tuesday the 16th. So, here at GQ, we put together a list of all these places, be it online or offline, where you can watch it. And who else will be there with you, cheering on the beautiful misery of it all:
TV (For The Sociable) Drinking Game Types)
Fox News
Viewership: The people who haven't taken the McCain/Palin '08 sticker off their SUV yet.
CNN
Viewership: (Crickets) The people who still watch CNN.
MSNBC
Viewership: The twentysomethings who waited hours on line for the iPhone 5.
CSPAN
Viewership: The old people from your local public library who have a thousand questions about how the Dewey Decimal System works.
Local News Channels
Viewership: The loving American nuclear family.
THE INTERNET (For The Tweeting Types)
YouTube Live Stream
Viewership: Half of the Internet.
CSPAN Debate Hub
Viewership: The old people from your local public library who have a thousand questions about how this damn PC works.
NPR Live Stream
Viewership: Passionate PTA members and the Grizzly Bears' entire fan base.
HuffPost Live
Viewership: We actually have no idea.
Xbox Live
Viewership: Anyone that reserved a copy of Halo 4, like, five years ago.
Reddit (r/politics)
Viewership: The people who see this election as one big meme.
Tumblr
Viewership: The people who see this election as one big GIF.
Sunlight Foundation
Viewership: The fact-checkers who really care about this election.
4Chan
Viewership: The avid owners of Guy Fawkes masks (see: V for Vendetta).
Andrew Sullivan's 'The Dish' Stream
Viewership: The just-barely-keeping-their-shit-together-about-Obama's-chances folk.
The New York Times' Live Blog
Viewership: The 'professional political' crowd. Most likely have a PhD in something.
BuzzFeed Live Blog
Viewership: Those totally serious about politics and kittens.
Yahoo! Live Blog
Viewership: Fantasy Football fans.
RADIO (For the 'Technology Ruins Everything' Types)
NPR
Viewership: People who decorate their cubicles with a pledge-drive Ira Glass poster, pack for long trips with pledge-drive Fresh Air tote bags, and crib all their political analysis from Morning Edition's Cokie Roberts, from whom they received a signed photo during the last pledge-drive.
Other Radio Stations That Aren't NPR
Viewership: Your great uncle in Redding and caffeine-straddled truck drivers.