--- title: Joe Biden References a 'Record Player' During 2020 Debate description: Joe Biden caught the internet's attention when he referenced a record player during the third 2020 Presidential debate. canonical: https://time.com/5676679/joe-biden-record-player-2020-debate/ author: Rachel E. Greenspan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-09-13T04:05:27.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:00:16.716Z og:title: Joe Biden Suggested People Keep the 'Record Player on at Night' During 2020 Debate. The Internet Had Thoughts og:description: Twitter weighed in on his comment during the third Democratic debate og:url: https://time.com/5676679/joe-biden-record-player-2020-debate/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4eae816712079982/698a02d54ee262cfa23163fd/dem-debate-30.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: Joe Biden Says to Keep the 'Record Player on at Night' og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Joe Biden Suggested People Keep the 'Record Player on at Night' During 2020 Debate. The Internet Had Thoughts twitter:description: Twitter weighed in on his comment during the third Democratic debate twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4eae816712079982/698a02d54ee262cfa23163fd/dem-debate-30.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Joe Biden Suggested People Keep the 'Record Player on at Night' During 2020 Debate. The Internet Had Thoughts > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. by [Rachel E. Greenspan](https://time.com/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Sep 13, 2019 4:05 AM UTC  Former Vice President Joe Biden responds to a question Sept. 12, 2019, during a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by ABC at Texas Southern University in Houston. Former Vice President Joe Biden responds to a question Sept. 12, 2019, during a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by ABC at Texas Southern University in Houston. David J. Phillip—AP by [Rachel E. Greenspan](https://time.com/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Sep 13, 2019 4:05 AM UTC Former Vice President [Joe Biden](https://time.com/tag/joe-biden/) referenced record players while answering a question during Thursday’s [2020 Democratic debate](https://time.com/5676343/democratic-debate-live/) about how to repair the legacy of [slavery](https://time.com/tag/slavery/) — and the internet collectively scratched its head. Moderator Linsey Davis of ABC brought up Biden’s 1975 statement that he’d “be damned if I feel responsible to pay for what happened 300 years ago” and then asked him “What responsibility do you think that Americans need to take to repair the legacy of slavery in our country?” “Look, there is institutional segregation in this country,” the [2020 Democratic primary front-runner](https://time.com/5667892/joe-biden-iowa-new-hampshire/) said, continuing to address racial inequality in the educational system. Suggesting that investing in teachers and social workers would help “make sure that every single child” goes to school and has better opportunities, he went on to say the following: “It’s not that \[some parents\] don’t want to help. They don’t know what quite to do: Play the radio, make sure the television… make sure you have the record player on at night.” While it wasn’t clear whether Biden meant that parents _should_ or _shouldn’t_ play the record player at night, it was immediately clear that the contender for the nomination had brought up a piece of equipment [that became outdated more than two decades ago](https://www.spin.com/2014/05/did-vinyl-really-die-in-the-90s-death-resurgence-sales/) (though the record player and vinyl records have seen a resurgence in recent years among millennials). Biden has had viral moments in the previous debates as well, most notably [directing viewers to “go to Joe 3-0-3-3-0”](https://time.com/5640954/joe-biden-website-30330-debate/) in his closing remarks of the previous debate in Detroit on July 31\. He meant to encourage texting the number JOE-30330, but he phrased it like a website, and the internet quickly latched on. Naturally, Twitter users made connections between the statements — while others just couldn’t help but joke about Biden’s dated reference. “Everyone please take out your record players and text JOE 30330,” wrote one user. > [](https://twitter.com/KFILE/status/1172335125582888967) “[Alexa](https://time.com/5625636/amazon-alexa-echo-voice-robot/), turn up the record player,” joked another. > [](https://twitter.com/fitzmaro/status/1172333595198775307) Here are some of the best Joe Biden record player tweets from viewers of Thursday’s debate. > [](https://twitter.com/deeskee0924/status/1172333626995826689) > [](https://twitter.com/AndyRichter/status/1172333227924549634) > [](https://twitter.com/michaellsmall/status/1172333663578550273) > [](https://twitter.com/jeremynewberger/status/1172333705974599680) > [](https://twitter.com/duepesci/status/1172333125952606211) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5676679/joe-biden-record-player-2020-debate/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5676679/joe-biden-record-player-2020-debate/"},"headline":"Joe Biden Suggested People Keep the 'Record Player on at Night' During 2020 Debate. 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