I debated in high school and college long before the lunacy described in this article had ever been thought of. Debate should be about argumentation and logic, not “performance,” but evidently that’s the new thing.
This is a lot like far-fetched nuisance litigation. Judges, both in courts of law and debates, could put an end to the antics if they had the gumption to do so, but many obviously don’t. Since a substantial number of debate judges are probably drawn from the ranks of faculty immersed in postmodernism, I can see why this style of “debate” would find favor.