MSNBC has had a debate countdown clock in the lower right corner of the screen all day today.

"Seriously... counting down hours to a debate... for an election more than a year and a half away? It's these kind of hokey, silly tricks that make cable news seem so dopey sometimes," an e-mailer remarked.

An second e-mailer added: "MSNBC's all day coverage is turning into an all day commercial for the debate tonight..."