I would like to point out that the canidates were not looking at the camera the whole time and also not necessairly looking at the audience. In front of the person dishing out the questions and time limits was a green, yellow and red light thing(just like the canidates had on their podium) so that they would know when they had to stop speaking and when to start wrapping it up.

While it is a bit distracting it helps to keep things more organized and helps things to move faster and flow smoother.