Romney bests Obama in US debate body language

US: Body language experts agreed Thursday that Mitt Romney bested Barack Obama in the US presidential debate when it came to wooing voters with gestures as well as words.

Where the Democratic incumbent perhaps came across as weary and off-balance, his Republican challenger had clearly upped his game for the first televised clash of the alpha dogs in the run-up to the November 6 vote.

“He was so dramatically different... He was authentically passionate and thrilled at the battle,” said Patti Wood, author of “Snap: Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma.”

Typically, she told AFP in a telephone interview, Romney in public has tended to say something, and then give a delayed supporting gesture -- something humans are hard-wired to interpret as a sign of lack of authenticity.

“But last night was just a total change,” with far more gestures in much better sync with his words, said Wood, who wondered if the candidate had downed “a quadruple espresso at Starbucks” prior to the debate.

Janine Driver, author of the just-published “You Can’t Lie to Me” and a consultant to law enforcement agencies on body language, agreed that Romney made “really good use” of hand gestures. “When people use hand gestures, it’s more memorable,” Driver added.

Traci Brown, who lectures across the United States on the power of non-verbal persuasion, said Romney’s “body language was the result of his conviction and his preparation.” “He was very eloquent. He didn’t say one ‘umm.’ He didn’t stutter any, whereas Obama did.

“Romney showed personality. He showed the guy that Republicans had hoped he would be.” It wasn’t a perfect 10 for Romney, however. Wood said he blinked often, indicating his stress level was high, and Driver noticed his “permasmile throughout the whole entire debate.” “That comes across as phony,” she said. But that was still better than Obama, who Wood said may have given the wrong impression by bowing his head whenever Romney spoke, even if it might only have been to jot some notes on his podium.

“Unfortunately, when he says something and then he brings his head down, that can look like he looks defeated or not powerful,” she said. “Repeating this behavior can be read incorrectly, as it was in this case.” Brown, speaking from Colorado, noted that Obama pursed his lips a lot. “That’s a sign of holding back and going into anger,” she said.

The Republican National Committee sought Thursday to capitalize on Obama’s downward gaze in a carefully edited, one minute and 40 second Internet video excerpt of the debate that it titled “Smirk.”

AFP