The polls that Fox News will use to determine participants in the first GOP presidential debate “remains an open question and a source of controversy,” New York Magazine reports.

“In the absence of a clear answer from the network, advisers for both Kasich and Perry have taken to lobbying Ailes and Fox executives to use polls that put their guy over the line.”

Said one network personality: “There’s total confusion about all of it. The Second Floor is making it up as they go along.”

“The sprawling field of Republican presidential hopefuls will be abruptly winnowed down to as few as 10 — at least for debating purposes — when the first presidential debate is held in early August, Fox News, the debate sponsor,” the New York Times reports.

“The network’s decision to invite only candidates who hit a certain polling threshold is the first organized attempt to curtail the size of the ballooning field. Presidential debates have proved crucial in recent nominating contests, with little-known candidates propelled to national prominence and experienced candidate thrust out of the race by poor performances.”

Politico: “The first Republican presidential debate would likely exclude two governors, a U.S. senator, and the only woman in the GOP’s presidential field, according to criteria released Wednesday.”