If the Lib Dems do well in this election, it will be down to the madness of crowds

It is now generally accepted that David Cameron made a colossal blunder in agreeing to the televised debates. Had last Thursday’s debate not taken place, the Conservatives would still have a comfortable lead over the other two main parties, on track for a small overall majority.

Yet among the commentariat — even those in the blue camp — the consensus is that the debates are good for politics. Whatever the outcome of the election, the British public will have made a more informed decision about whom to vote for. In particular, large swaths of the electorate who might otherwise remain disaffected will have been engaged by the televised debates.

But are they really good for the common weal? The surge in Lib Dem support following Nick Clegg’s performance isn’t based on any popular support for the party’s policies. Few people know what they are. Rather, it’s because Clegg has novelty value. He’s the surprise candidate whom the public can throw their weight behind in order to disrupt the narrative. Supporting him is a way of taking ownership of the contest.

This is a familiar model, but it’s not that of a general election. It’s the X Factor. Simon Cowell said earlier this year that he thought there might be a way of grafting a reality show format on to politics, and the prime ministerial debates have proved to be exactly that. In America, where televised presidential debates preceded the emergence of reality as a dominant television genre, that isn’t the way they’re perceived by the viewing public. But in Britain the debates are new and, as such, they’re seen through the reality show lens. The fact that they’re being held once a week in the 8.30pm-10pm slot, and will culminate in a popular vote, doesn’t help.