There were also some examples that reminded me of two posts back in March, showing how to use the 'clap on the name' technique to ensure that the applause comes in on time:
'Clap on the name': a practical tip for Ed Miliband and/or his speechwriters
There were also some examples that reminded me of two posts back in March, showing how to use the 'clap on the name' technique to ensure that the applause comes in on time:
Delayed applause for Ed Miliband's claims on the 'centre ground'
- Labour Party activists are not very enthusiastic about re-occupying the 'centre ground'.
- They don't believe that he means it given his attacks on New Labour throughout his leadership campaign (and in this speech)).
- The delays might have been the result of poor speech-writing.
Did David Miliband lose because he was too old and experienced?
| Age on becoming leader | Years as an MP before becoming leader |
Miliband Cameron Clegg | 40 41 38 | 5 4 2 |
| Age on becoming leader | Years as an MP on beoming leader |
Callaghan Brown Wilson Thatcher Heath Major Blair | 64 56 47 50 49 47 41 | 29 24 18 17 15 14 11 |
"the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans - born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace ... "
Ed Miliband "gets it" in his bid to bond with the brethren
Harold Wilson did it by retaining enough traces of a Yorkshire accent to sound like 'one of them'.
In interviews and chat shows, Tony Blair occasionally (and rather unconvincingly) lapsed into 'Estuary English', inserting glottal stops at points where he would more usually have used a perfectly enunciated 't' sound.
Having spent five years at school in Doncaster, I've often wondered how the town's most famous MP, having been parachuted into a safe seat by the Labour Party high command, was managing to get along with the locals.
One thing I'd already noticed was that Ed Miliband seems even keener than Tony Blair on glottle stops. You'll hear quite a few of them in this clip, even though they're quite alien to the regional accent in that part of South Yorkshire - where the sound is typically heard as proof that the speaker must be 'a bloody Southerner.'
In yesterday's leadership acceptance speech (which can be seen in full HERE), another ploy was on show with the repetitive use of contemporary youthful jargon, in which the verb "to get" is preferred to more traditional verbs like to understand, to know or to appreciate - six times in a row in this particular sequence.
Labour Party leaders' acceptance speeches: Neil Kinnock, 1983; Ed Miliband, 2010
Kinnock Part I (about 6 minutes):
Kinnock Part II (about 7 minutes):
More lessons from Vince Cable's speech
Delayed applause for the coalition in Vince Cable's conference speech (at exactly the same point as in Nick Clegg's)
- It was not only the third "it's good for" in a row, but was announced as the final one in the list by the word "and..."
- It only attracted a pitiful four seconds of applause.
Party conference season prize competition
Delayed applause at a key point in Nick Clegg's conference speech
'Objects as visual aids': UK Speechwriters' Guild Conference, 2010
When Brian Jenner, founder of the UK Speechwriters' Guild asked me to do a 10-15 minute presentation at this year's annual conference, the challenge was to try to put into practice the advice of one of my heroes, the late Professor Sir Lawrence Bragg (for more on whom see HERE,), one of whose tips for lecturers was:
'There should be one main theme, and all the subsidiary interesting points, experiments, or demonstrations should be such that they remind the hearer of the theme. As in a picture, so in a lecture, the force of the impression depends upon a ruthless sacrifice of unnecessary detail.'
The 'one main theme' I selected was something I've blogged and written about before, namely how the use of an object as a visual aid can sometimes have an impressive impact when it comes to getting a point across your audience.
There were (of course!) three reasons why it struck me as a promising topic for a short talk at this particular conference.
- It was potentially relevant for an audience of speechwriters, most of whom would have had conversations, if not arguments, with their clients about whether to use PowerPoint or some other type of visual aid.
- Being able to show the audience actual examples makes it a subject that's much easier to speak about than to write about (as I'd discovered when writing about visual aids in my books on speech-making and presentation).
- It would give me a chance to give an implicit demonstration of a subsidiary theme that I'm also quite keen on, namely that short video clips are another type of visual aid that can help to get your point across with clarity and impact.
"We let it slip" - Governor of the Bank of England at the TUC
Tony Blair can still deliver - even when it's only a platitude!
In the wake of the "down with Blair" chorus that's greeted his memoirs in the UK, and with the Labour party poised to dump him and all his wares into the dustbin of history, up he pops on the other side of the Atlantic to receive the Liberty Medal for his role in the Northern Ireland and Middle East peace processes.
Why are there so many novels and histories in the present tense?
PHILIP PULLMAN AND PHILIP HENSHER CRITICISE BOOKER PRIZE FOR INCLUDING PRESENT TENSE NOVELS
Philip Pullman and Philip Hensher claimed that the use of present tense is becoming a cliche.
Pullman, the best-selling children's author, was scathing over its use.
He said: "This wretched fad has been spreading more and more widely. I can’t see the appeal at all. To my mind it drastically narrows the options available to the writer. When a language has a range of tenses such as the perfect, the imperfect, the pluperfect, each of which makes other kinds of statement possible, why on earth not use them?"
He added: "I just don’t read present-tense novels any more. It’s a silly affectation, in my view, and it does nothing but annoy."
The six authors listed for this year's prize are Peter Carey, Andrea Levy, Howard Jacobson, Tom McCarthy, Damon Galgut and Emma Donoghue. The first three authors' novels are in the past tense while the others written in the more "fashionable" style.
Hensher, whose novel The Northern Clemency was Booker shortlisted in 2008, said that writers were mistaken by thinking that using the present tense would make their writing more vivid. He said: "Writing is vivid if it is vivid. A shift in tense won't do that for you."
US Congress makes UK Prime Minister's Question Time seem very restrained!
The most extraordinary speech I've ever seen!
ANALYSIS:
GUEST POST BY JOHN ZIMMER
Shortly after posting this video, John Zimmer posted a perceptive analysis of it on his blog Manner of Speaking, and I'm grateful to him for permission to reproduce it here:
The video above has been spreading like wildfire on the Internet. It is a short speech by Phil Davison, a Republican candidate for the position of Treasurer in Stark County, Ohio.
Davison’s speech, which was given to about 100 people, is, to say the least, memorable. In his blog, my friend Max Atkinson states that in over 30 years of collecting tapes of speeches, he has never seen anything quite like it.
News agencies and YouTubers are, perhaps not surprisingly, having a field day with the story. Now, I know nothing about Davison or the burning political issues in Stark County, Ohio. But I would like to take a different tack and try to analyze the speech to see what lessons we can learn from it from the public speaking perspective.
First, the speech. If you haven’t seen it, fasten your seatbelt.
OK, what can we learn? First off, two main lessons:
- Lesson No. 1: Speakers must control their emotions. Speaking with passion is one of the most important things a speaker can do. But the passion must be harnessed and channeled in a constructive manner. Otherwise the speech becomes a runaway freight train. Do not let your emotions get the better of you.
- Lesson No. 2: If you must refer to extensive notes, you are probably better off staying behind the lectern. If you step away, only to have to hasten back, it is very distracting. A speaker should move with purpose and confidence and not pace back and forth.
Apart from these lessons, here are some other observations:
- 0:00 – 0:30 During his opening, Davison referred to his notes at least ten times in 30 seconds. It is OK to use notes if you need them, but at the very least you should have your opening memorized as it is the first impression that you make on the audience. Note the mistake about the date of the election. Not a major gaffe, but not something you want to have happen right of the bat.
- 0:35 Here, Davison explains a bit of his background, noting that he has served on his home county’s council for 13 years. Somewhat oddly, though, he tries to indicate the number 13 by holding up a combination of his fingers. Gestures should be meaningful; the gesture here was not needed.
- 0:43 – 1:00 Davison sets out his educational background and, for the most part, he does a good job. He makes good eye contact and his voice is strong but measured – at least until he mentions his degree in communications.
- 1:00 – 1:22 The finger-pointing and the tone are not likely to generate much sympathy. As for “I will not apologize for my tone tonight”, it would have helped if Davison had said exactly why he was so visibly upset. If the incumbent had done something to merit this degree of consternation, it would have helped to say so, if for no other reason than to assure people that this was heartfelt indignation rather than just ranting.
- 1:22 – 1:35 “Republican in times good and bad.” Well, OK, he is a loyal Republican and he is speaking to members of his political party, but the statement is hackneyed, without any concrete examples and he screams it.
- 1:35 – 2:05 This was a key part of the speech. Davison had a very powerful quote from Albert Einstein, but his emotion got the best of him and he botched the line. Unfortunate.
- 2:05 – 2:35 He began by talking about the situation in the Treasurer’s office and how there was a need for structure and guidance. I was hoping to hear something substantive, a concrete example of what was needed. But there was only shouting, vague talk about “aggressive” campaigning and mixed metaphors (“hit the ground running and come out swinging”).
- 2:35 – 3:00 He tried to engage the audience by asking what drastic times require, and this was good. But I would like to have seen the look on the face of the person who gave the answer (“drastic measures”) when Davison thanked him. His thank you was … beyond exuberant.
- 3:00 – 3:40 I liked how Davison appeared to speak extemporaneously by referring to something his friend had just said. But the bit about “infestation” and politics being “winner take all” was incongruous and incomprehensible.
- 3:40 – 4:40 I thought that this was, relatively, one of the best parts of the speech. Davison was calm and measured.
- 4:40 – 5:52 But it didn’t last long as the “let’s use this knowledge … as a weapon” and the “both barrels guns loaded” was just grandstanding. The rest of the speech was relatively calm, but by this time the impression had been made.
Ultimately, Davison did not get the nomination. In this article, he expresses his disappointment and his desire for feedback. Well, if he ever reads this blog, I hope that this post helps. Going forward, I would offer Davison the following ideas to consider:
- Have someone proofread the speech to cut out excessive posturing and ensure that the content is substantive enough.
- Practice the speech often, including moving with purpose.
- Get comfortable without notes or with just the main points as an aide mémoire.
- Breathe deeply.
- Find a quiet place to warm-up right before speaking by swinging the arms, clapping the hands, stretching, etc. to release some of that nervous energy.
- Stay well hydrated. Avoid caffeine.
And finally, let’s not forget one thing. It might not have been the greatest speech, but at least Davison had the courage of his convictions to stand up in front of 100 people and have a kick at the can. And that’s what public speaking is all about. It’s easy to criticize from the “cheap seats” but it’s another matter when you’re the one on stage.