There's no doubt the debates are popular with the public. Fifty-two million viewers tuned into the McCain-Obama match and the Biden-Palin slugfest enticed some 70 million gawkers. Yet we can't help wonder if voters walk away truly informed about the positions of the people they will be electing to the highest offices in the land.

How much do those 90-second, talking-point laden answers really say about how candidates would actually govern, not to mention about how they would handle a complicated crisis?

Tonight, McCain and Obama will square off in a town hall debate where the questions will come exclusively from undecided voters in the audience, which could help to reel in the rhetoric. But for the third debate next week, why not shake things up even more and fully embrace a time-honored tradition in American life -- the quiz show. As part of our civic duty to improve the electoral process, we propose a presidential battle of wits on a popular game show that would surely send the TV ratings to record levels.

"Jeopardy"
Obama's habit of letting go an endless barrage of ums and ahs before getting to the answer would likely drive efficiency freak Alex Trebek nuts. We also imagine at one point there would be a fairly intense battle between a furious John McCain and a non-functioning buzzer.

"The Price Is Right"
A very rich 72-year-old man who probably hasn't touched hard currency since the early 1980s attempting to gauge how much things cost is comedy gold. But this would be a struggle for Obama, too; he'd have to quickly calculate the price of big ticket items without his trusty 20 percent Rezko discount.

"The Newlywed Game"
The Obama and McCain couples aren't exactly newlyweds. But given the public's thirst for human interest stories and fascination with how many times other couples "make whoopee," this could be a real "game changer."

"Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?"
Let's just say that if this format was on the docket in 2000, Karl Rove and the Republican establishment would have never thrown their lot behind a certain Texas governor.

"Hole in the Wall"
This new game show isn't a quiz show at all. Instead, contestants wearing goofy, tight-fitting scuba suits are forced to contort to the shape of a hole in a rapidly approaching wall or risk getting knocked in a pool of water. Considering the first order of business for our next president will be to go China and beg for money, it is important we see how each candidate deals with humiliation.