There's no debate: Kids win with Ellerbee

Linda Ellerbee hosts a special in which kids ask questions of the presidential candidates. (nickelodeon)

When it comes to choosing a president, do adults really care what kids think? Probably not. Hopefully not. But that doesn't mean kids shouldn't have opinions.

And when it comes to making kids feel empowered and engaged, Nickelodeon understands that a little ego-stroking doesn't hurt.

"Grown-ups will pay attention to how you vote," host Linda Ellerbee declares at the start of the Nick News special "Kids Pick the President," in which John McCain and Barack Obama answer videotaped questions from kids around the country. And the candidates, Ellerbee says, "must think you're important. Otherwise, why take the time to answer your questions?"

She has a point there - especially because Obama and McCain seem as serious as she is about the endeavor. Ellerbee's Nick News specials always manage, quite nicely, to simplify without condescending, and this one is no exception. Here, kids ask legitimate questions: A boy named Alex asks about global warming, while a boy named Joshua wants to know "whatcha gonna do about the war in Iraq." The candidates, in return, offer coherent, condensed versions of their positions, blissfully free of political red meat.

Edited to fit into a half-hour special, the answers come across as a bit of political haiku. But they also give some insight into how the candidates think - and how often they think alike. Both offer nearly identical answers to questions about illegal immigration (secure the borders, and show compassion for people already here) and the gap between the rich and poor (invest in education).

The differences, when they come up, are intriguing. When one girl from St. Louis asks what the candidates will do to improve the US's standing with foreign countries, Obama talks about expanding foreign aid, while McCain says he wants to "make sure the world knows America will never torture another person, another prisoner, that we capture."

Of course, a special like this can only go so deep. There are no follow-up questions to address specific congressional votes, no fact-checking or rebuttals, so it's a little unclear how much the kids have to go on when they cast their virtual ballots. But their preferences will be recorded: From tomorrow night to Oct. 20, an online ballot will be open at www.nick.com/kpp. (The site also offers more detailed information about the candidates and their positions, along with a couple of very chaste songs.)

The results will be announced on another Nickelodeon special, airing at 8 p.m. on Oct. 20. Whether grown-ups will truly pay attention is an open question. But if kids tune in - and do it again four years from now - Ellerbee will have done her job.

Joanna Weiss can be reached at weiss@globe.com. For more on TV, go to www.viewerdiscretion.net.