I think that there are certain debaters. Like Destiny. That turn the audience off. In fact that might be his real strategy. If I'm winning I'm winning and if I'm losing I make the debate boring and unwatchable. You can't have a productive debate if both opponents aren't somewhat willing to find common ground or even embrace the counter point. That's what made the blood-sports good. They had a lot of youthful impressionable people involved in the debate not just watching it. Today's debates simply feeling like entrenched tactical exchanges.

Personally I've always thought that the interview format is better for us. Preferable with an intelligent yet naive opponent who is trying to steel man our viewpoints. When people struggle to find something they disagree with that's when there's productive exchange. We use to have a lot of exchanges like this 3 or 4 years ago.

Finally, people who are banned from YouTube like Martinez or Handsome Truth are able to still spread the message to YouTube in this roundabout way.

True, and I'm not saying to totally abandon all debate channels but there are certain people that I just don't see a point engaging with.