Public television carries both Washington Week in Review and The McLaughlin Group. The moderator on Washington Week maintains a polite demeanor as journalists report their respective political beats of the national news. At the end of each organized account of current affairs, fellow journalist-panelists politely question each other. It's all very civil. By contrast, the McLaughlin Group moderator acts more like a sports referee.
Several issues occupy the panelists for each half-hour show.
Where the Washington Week panelists are quiet and orderly, the McLaughlin panelists contradict, interrupt, and jeer at each other. There is often spirited competition. Where Washington Week concentrates on agreement and consensus, McLaughlin highlights differences and conflicts. It is unlikely that you will find such extreme or consistent deliberative styles during meetings. Instead, most committees have a mixture of styles, and often they shift back and forth within a single meeting, depending upon the issues at stake and the personalities involved.