We just launched a new version of CreateDebate that will let you personalize your debates more than ever!  Go ahead and create a new debate.  The new interface makes it easy to insert pictures, add videos from YouTube or Google Video, add unlimited hyperlinks, format your text, and so much more!

The moderator panel has been upgraded as well.  It is now possible to edit every facet of your debates, including tags, pictures, categories, etc. It is even possible to go back and improve or fine tune older debates.

At CreateDebate, our goal is to empower people to make better decisions.  We hope that by providing you with a more powerful toolset, you’ll be able to create even more interesting and compelling debates.  What are you waiting for, go check it out!

PS – If you find any any elusive bugs, please drop a note or leave a comment (and include the version of your current browser).  Thanks!

As 2008 comes to a close, it’s time to take a step back and look at the topics, news stories, and people that consumed our thoughts and passion throughout the year on CreateDebate.  2008 was a remarkable year in every sense of the word.  From the launch of CreateDebate into the wild to a historic election, global economic meltdowns, and enough social issues to debate for eternity this year will certainly go down in history. To that end, CreateDebate would like to take a nostalgic look backwards at the topics that shaped our world in 2008.

Political Debates

Politics was at the top of everyone’s mind in 2008, a landmark US election year which was guaranteed to make history no matter who won the Presidential race.  For the first time in history, an African-American was elected as President of the United States, thanks in large part to a phenomenal grassroots campaign leveraging the power of the Internet.  People on all sides of the political spectrum were passionate about their candidates and issues and leveraged CreateDebate as a platform to make their case.

1. Who is going to be the next president of the United States?
2. Was Gov. Sarah Palin the right choice for McCain’s VP running mate?
3. Capitalism vs. Socialism:  Which economic theory is better?
4. Are George Bush and Tony Blair guilty of war crimes?
5. Who should I vote for in the 2008 New Mexico Senate Race?

Social Issues Debates

Social issues were also top of mind for many people in 2008.  Many oft-debated topics such as abortion and gun rights surfaced as hot button issues, as well as more recent social issues such as gay marriage, global warming, and stem cell research.

1. Should abortion be legal?
2. Should guns be banned in America?
3. Should the US government fund stem cell research?
4. Are humans responsible for global warming?
5. How can gay marriage hurt anyone?

Religion Debates

Religion continued to be a popular subject to debate in 2008, from the very existence of a God (or gods) to interpretations of various religious doctrines, our users debated it all in 2008.

1. Do you believe in God?
2. Is homosexuality a sin?
3. Has evolution been scientifically proven?
4. Would the world be a better place without religions?
5. Jesus Christ: Fact or Fiction?

Economic Debates

The economy was on a lot of people’s minds this year as unprecedented turbulence in the financial markets wreaked havoc throughout the world.  The US government intervened in ways not seen since the Great Depression, and people throughout the world saw the values of their homes and retirement portfolios plummet.  Through it all, CreateDebate was there to capture the thoughts and passion of the people.

1. Should the US government bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
2. Outsourcing of US jobs to foreign countries:  bad or good?
3. Do you want Congress to approve the $700B bailout?
4. Should the US remove the ban on offshore drilling?
5. Is a federal sales tax more fair than the current income tax?

Entertainment Debates

2008 wasn’t all serious, and people took time away from worrying about the economy and politics to engage in debate about popular culture phenomena as well.  Here’s a look at some of the top less serious debates.

1. What’s the best band of all time? 
2. Will Mac ever beat PC?
3. Who will be the winner of this debate?
4. Bud Light or Miller Lite?
5. What’s the funniest pick up line you’ve ever heard?

Most Popular Blog Posts

The CreateDebate blog gives us a great creative outlet to discuss life at CreateDebate, tout new features that we’ve rolled out, and a soapbox to voice our thoughts on different topics that shape our world.  Several of our posts caused quite a stir this year, and we hope to continue stirring the pot in the years to come.

1. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Internet Users
2. How to Write Strong Arguments
3. How to Spot and Destroy Weak Arguments
4. Top 10 Religion Debates of All Time
5. Listening to Customers is Hard, Hard, Hard

About the 2008 Most Popular Methodology
To develop the CreateDebate Year in Review, our editors analyzed debate statistics based upon a number of factors, including traffic volume, argument volume, and diversity of participation to see which themes and trends bubble to the surface.

About CreateDebate
CreateDebate is the Internet’s leading social debating community that serves to help users make better decisions by understanding various viewpoints of a given issue.  The community is built around ideas, discussion, and democracy. CreateDebate provides a framework that makes compelling and meaningful debates easy to create and fun to use.

After more than 50,000 nominations and 80,000 verified votes, we’re pleased to announce that CreateDebate is a finalist in Mashable’s 2nd Open Web Awards!

Mashable has selected the three start-ups in each category that have received the most votes. CreateDebate was nominated in the politics category and thanks to you we are only 1 round away from winning the whole thing!

We are very excited to be in the final and we would love even more to win. Therefore please vote for us using the widget below. Remember you can vote once every 24 hours between now and midnight PST on December 14th.