I have always hated the idea that it's the communicators job to make sure people understand them. This is of course true in any professional setting like adver

I have always hated the idea that it's the communicators job to make sure people understand them. This is of course true in any professional setting like advertising, PR etc. But in a debate between two parties this insistence and demand is killing most possibilities of actually having a debate. The first problem is that if someone is arguing from a position we have predujize against we will be interpreting the worst possible intent of what is being said while if it's something we agree with we are much more forgiving when interpreting. So we are biased either against hearing the argument or from hearing the flaws depending on whether we agree with the original stance of the argument. So much potential for actually learning something is lost because of the idea that it's only up to the communicator to make sure they are understood. So many insights are lost from demanding other people make themselves understandable rather than trying to understand what they are trying to say.