Featuring a balance of practical advice and sound instruction, Speechwriting: A Rhetorical Guide provides readers with essential knowledge to prepare and deliver well-constructed and well-researched speeches appropriate for a variety of contexts. The first part of the book discusses traditional rhetorical theory in a way that is direct and easy for students to understand. The chapters cover such topics as audience and the rhetorical canons of invention, elocution or style, disposition or organization, delivery, and memory. Chapters in the second part then apply the rhetorical principles to four different types of speeches: inaugural addresses, commencement addresses, a variety of persuasive speeches, and a number of ceremonial ones. The text includes excerpts from actual speeches, illustrative speechwriting samples with commentary from a prospective speech writer, and a set of exercises that encourage readers to think about how the sample speech might be improved upon or modified if they were the one writing it. Speechwriting connects rhetorical theory to modern situations and settings to emphasize real-world application. The text is an exemplary resource for courses in speech and writing as found in departments of communication studies, English and composition, political science, education, and any other discipline in which people are frequently asked to speak or address an audience.

In 1903, W. E. B. Du Bois wrote about the Talented Tenth in an influential essay of the same name. The concept exalted college-educated Blacks who Du Bois believed could provide the race with the guidance it needed to surmount slavery, segregation, and oppression in America. Although Du Bois eventually reassessed this idea, the rhetoric of the Talented Tenth resonated, still holding sway over a hundred years later. In Rethinking Racial Uplift: Rhetorics of Black Unity and Disunity in the Obama Era, author Nigel I. Malcolm asserts that in the post-civil rights era, racial uplift has been redefined not as Black public intellectuals lifting the masses but as individuals securing advantage for themselves and their children. Malcolm examines six best-selling books published during Obama's presidency-including Randall Kennedy's Sellout, Bill Cosby's and Alvin Poussaint's Come on People, and Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me-and critically analyzes their rhetorics on Black unity, disunity, and the so-called "postracial" era. Based on these writings and the work of political and social scientists, Malcolm shows that a large, often-ignored, percentage of Blacks no longer see their fate as connected with that of other African Americans. While many Black intellectuals and activists seek to provide a justification for Black solidarity, not all agree. In Rethinking Racial Uplift, Malcolm takes contemporary Black public intellectual discourse seriously and shows that disunity among Blacks, a previously ignored topic, is worth exploring.

Although US history is marred by institutionalized racism and sexism, postracial and postfeminist attitudes drive our polarized politics. Violence against people of color, transgendered and gay people, and women soar upon the backdrop of Donald Trump, Tea Party affiliates, alt-right members like Richard Spencer, and right-wing political commentators like Milo Yiannopoulos who defend their racist and sexist commentary through legalistic claims of freedom of speech. While more institutions recognize the volatility of these white men's speech, few notice or have thoughtfully considered the role of white nationalist, alt-right, and conservative white women's messages that organizationally preserve white supremacy. In Rebirthing a Nation: White Women, Identity Politics, and the Internet, author Wendy K. Z. Anderson details how white nationalist and alt-right women refine racist rhetoric and web design as a means of protection and simultaneous instantiation of white supremacy, which conservative political actors including Sarah Palin, Donald Trump, Kellyanne Conway, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Ivanka Trump have amplified through transnational politics. By validating racial fears and political divisiveness through coded white identity politics, postfeminist and motherhood discourse functions as a colorblind, gilded cage. Rebirthing a Nation reveals how white nationalist women utilize colorblind racism within digital space, exposing how a postfeminist framework becomes fodder for conservative white women's political speech to preserve institutional white supremacy.

In December 2018, the United States Senate unanimously passed the nation's first antilynching act, the Justice for Victims of Lynching Act. For the first time in US history, legislators, representing the American people, classified lynching as a federal hate crime. While lynching histories and memories have received attention among communication scholars and some interdisciplinary studies of traditional civil rights memorials exist, contemporary studies often fail to examine the politicized nature of the spaces. This volume represents the first investigation of the National Memorial for Peace and Justice and the Legacy Museum, both of which strategically make clear the various links between America's history of racial terror and contemporary mass incarceration conditions, the mistreatment of juveniles, and capital punishment. Racial Terrorism: A Rhetorical Investigation of Lynching focuses on several key social agents and organizations that played vital roles in the public and legal consciousness raising that finally led to the passage of the act. Marouf A. Hasian Jr. and Nicholas S. Paliewicz argue that the advocacy of attorney Bryan Stevenson, the work of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), and the efforts of curators at Montgomery's new Legacy Museum all contributed to the formation of a rhetorical culture that set the stage at last for this hallmark lynching legislation. The authors examine how the EJI uses spaces of remembrance to confront audiences with race-conscious messages and measure to what extent those messages are successful.

The relationship between the presidency and the press has transformed-seemingly overnight-from one where reports and columns were filed, edited, and deliberated for hours before publication into a brave new world where texts, tweets, and sound bites race from composition to release within a matter of seconds. This change, which has ultimately made political journalism both more open and more difficult, brings about many questions, but perhaps the two most important are these: Are the hard questions still being asked? Are they still being answered? In Columns to Characters, Stephanie A. Martin and top scholars and journalists offer a fresh perspective on how the evolution of technology affects the way presidents interact with the public. From Bill Clinton's saxophone playing on the Arsenio Hall Show to Barack Obama's skillful use of YouTube, Twitter, and Reddit as the first "social media president," political communication appears to reflect the increasing fragmentation of the American public. The accessible essays here explore these implications in a variety of real-world circumstances: the "narcotizing" numbness of information overload and voter apathy; the concerns over privacy, security, and civil liberties; new methods of running political campaigns and mobilizing support for programs; and a future "post-rhetorical presidency" in which the press is all but irrelevant. Each section of the book concludes with a "reality check," a short reflection by a working journalist (or, in one case, a former White House insider) on the presidential beat.

The Natural Speaker is a friendly step-by-step guide to public speaking that explores the fundamental skills necessary to present a natural and rewarding speech to any audience. By providing an overview of speech construction, practice, and delivery, this book is designed to enhance and improve upon students' natural strengths. Featuring a warm and humorous writing style, The Natural Speaker illustrates the concepts and skills required for enjoyable public speaking, and Randy Fujishin invites readers to view speaking as a life-long journey. This tenth edition features a new chapter on speaking in online contexts, including leading or participating in online meetings, using digital presentation tools, and guidelines for effective online PowerPoint presentations, as well as additional focus on intercultural considerations and new Internet student activities at the end of each chapter. This book serves as an accessible core textbook for Public Speaking and Introduction to Communication courses and also provides guidance for individual readers and public speaking workshops. Online resources include an instructor's manual with sample test questions and exercises.

Oral Communication: A Lecture Guide provides students with a comprehensive yet accessible guide to effective communication and public speaking. The texts help readers understand their role, as well as the role of their audience, during the communication process. With this new knowledge, students learn how to present concepts and share ideas with confidence and efficacy. The book begins by introducing students to the concept of communication, highlighting that communication is a complicated, shared process that is composed of many variables and elements. Proceeding chapters teach readers how to prepare for a public address, organize a presentation to achieve maximum audience understanding and impact, and strategically practice the delivery of a speech. Additional topics include the disadvantages of memorizing a speech word-for-word, the impact of nonverbal communication on an address, and the advantages and disadvantages of different types of speeches or presentations. The text closes with a chapter dedicated to presentational aids and how their correct use can maintain audience engagement and increase understanding. Oral Communication is ideal for undergraduate courses in public relations, broadcast and radio journalism, and communication studies.

Leading Your Audience: A Systematic Approach to Public Speaking is designed to prepare students to lead as public speakers in the classroom and beyond. The text increases readers' understanding of the principles and processes of communicating effectively in public situations. As students participate in the process, they become proficient in basic speaking skills, while increasing their confidence successfully in a variety of contexts. Over the course of 11 chapters, students are presented with material compiled in a strategic order to maximize time and learning during the academic term. They learn incrementally while they practice, build proficiency, and complete speech assignments in each chapter. Written in a conversational tone to reduce stress, students navigate through simplified formulas and lists that contain clear and concise content that is cross-referenced throughout the text. The third edition features more timely and detailed examples, practical explanations, and fresh sources. Material on evaluating types of sources for reliability, detecting misinformation and disinformation, the impacts of technology, understanding audience diversity, digital audience considerations, group collaboration, and more has been expanded or added. Extensively class tested, Leading Your Audience is an ideal textbook for foundational or advanced courses in public speaking both in person and online.

The Complete Business Speaker: How to Prepare and Deliver Effective Business Presentations equips students with the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to successfully speak on behalf of an enterprise. The text focuses on the real-world challenges associated with business speaking and effectively prepares readers to deliver speeches and presentations with savvy and confidence. Readers learn the importance of tailoring a speech to key audiences, as well as a company's unique goals and policies. The text underscores how prepared remarks must be well-researched and effective to make an impact on potential legislation, local regulation, community relations, and business operations. Students learn effective strategies for speech delivery, listening, and interacting with audiences. Specific topics include best practices for delivering bad news, how to handle hostile audiences, addressing small groups, and whether or not the use of PowerPoint slides will enhance a presentation. Throughout, real-life accounts from a variety of business speakers illuminate the successes and learning opportunities experienced by business professionals. Providing students with a highly practical and focused perspective, The Complete Business Speaker is well suited for courses in business communication and public speaking.

The Communication Experience: A Guide to Successful Public Speaking introduces students to the study of public speaking by focusing on four foundational conclusions about the communication experience: that writing, reading, critical thinking, and speaking skills are needed to succeed in any academic or professional setting; that public speaking is just one of many communication skills needed to succeed; that speeches are more than something that you cut and paste together; and that public communication is often made more difficult than it has to be. The text helps students recognize the role of public speaking within the larger practice of communication, develop essential skills for and approaches to speechmaking, and understand and overcome communication apprehension. The text is organized into three units. Unit one focuses on the global communication experience. In unit two, students learn about academic and professional speechmaking. Unit three teaches readers how to personalize their speeches, addressing ways they can cultivate their own unique style and customize their content. Individual chapters address various communication environments; incorporating audience ethics into speechmaking; argumentation; hearing versus listening; tailoring a speech for a specific audience; organizational strategies for speeches; storytelling in academic and professional presentations; finding your voice; and more. The Communication Experience is an exemplary resource for courses and programs in public speaking and communication.

When Donald J. Trump announced his campaign for president in 2015, journalists, historians, and politicians alike attempted to compare his candidacy to that of Governor George C. Wallace. Like Trump, Wallace, who launched four presidential campaigns between 1964 and 1976, utilized rhetoric based in resentment, nationalism, and anger to sway and eventually captivate voters among America's white majority. Though separated by almost half a century, the campaigns of both Wallace and Trump broke new grounds for political partisanship and divisiveness. In Fear, Hate, and Victimhood: How George Wallace Wrote the Donald Trump Playbook, author Andrew E. Stoner conducts a deep analysis of the two candidates, their campaigns, and their speeches and activities, as well as their coverage by the media, through the lens of demagogic rhetoric. Though past work on Wallace argues conventional politics overcame the candidate, Stoner makes the case that Wallace may in fact be a prelude to the more successful Trump campaign. Stoner considers how ideas about "in-group" and "out-group" mentalities operate in politics, how anti-establishment views permeate much of the rhetoric in question, and how expressions of victimhood often paradoxically characterize the language of a leader praised for "telling it like it is." He also examines the role of political spectacle in each candidate's campaigns, exploring how media struggles to respond to-let alone document-demagogic rhetoric. Ultimately, the author suggests that the Trump presidency can be understood as an actualized version of the Wallace presidency that never was. Though vast differences exist, the demagogic positioning of both men provides a framework to dissect these times-and perhaps a valuable warning about what is possible in our highly digitized information society.