Public Forum (PF) is a two-on-two debate format focused on current events and policy. It is one of the most widely competed team debate events in US high school competition. This guide covers the complete speech order, crossfire structure, prep time rules, and how to time a PF round.
Shared prep pool per team, two-device sync, all 11 speeches preloaded. No signup.
Open PF timer →| # | Speech | Side | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1st Speaker — Team A (Pro) | PRO | 4:00 |
| 2 | 1st Speaker — Team B (Con) | CON | 4:00 |
| 3 | Crossfire #1 (1st speakers) | CX | 3:00 |
| 4 | 2nd Speaker — Team A (Pro) | PRO | 4:00 |
| 5 | 2nd Speaker — Team B (Con) | CON | 4:00 |
| 6 | Crossfire #2 (2nd speakers) | CX | 3:00 |
| 7 | Summary — Team A | PRO | 3:00 |
| 8 | Summary — Team B | CON | 3:00 |
| 9 | Grand Crossfire (all 4 speakers) | CX | 3:00 |
| 10 | Final Focus — Team A | PRO | 2:00 |
| 11 | Final Focus — Team B | CON | 2:00 |
Prep time: 3 minutes per team, distributed freely. Each team shares one pool across both speakers.
Public Forum has three crossfire periods. The first two crossfires are between the two first speakers and two second speakers respectively — they question each other directly. Grand Crossfire involves all four debaters and is less structured, with any debater able to ask or answer questions.
During crossfire, both speakers stand and engage directly. The judge times the 3-minute period but does not intervene in the questioning structure.
Each team has 3 minutes of prep time shared between both partners. Prep may be called before either speaker's speech — the 1st speaker might use 1 minute before their constructive and the 2nd speaker uses the remaining 2 minutes before their constructive, or any other combination.
Prep time cannot be used during crossfire periods. The judge tracks each team's remaining prep separately.