Memorandum

To: From: Date: Re: Mrs. Renee Pay Alec Jenson November 16, 2012 Professional Speaker Analysis

I had the opportunity to listen to Barack Obama, the professional speaker and the Democratic nominee for the President of the Unites States, at the Democratic National Convention on October 3, 2012. Organization Barack Obama exhibited how if America chooses to reelect him, he will be sure to strengthen our economy with a solid foundation. President Obama wants America to get back to basics by regulating the stock market, banks, and the housing industry to ensure there wont be another economic melt down for decades to come. By rewarding companies who outsource fewer jobs, the President wants to increase the amount of products made here in the USA. He says that creating 1 million jobs in the manufacturing industry will help lay an economic foundation. By creating more grants, reducing the cost of college in half, and increasing childhood education the President believes that we can become a world leader in science and math again. Increasing funding for renewable energy will create even more jobs at home, as well as reduce our foreign oil dependency. Overall, the president introduced several ideas and achievable plans to help lay a better foundation for the well being of Americas economy. The organizational pattern Barack Obama used was the Problem Solution Pattern. He got his message across by demonstrating the problems America is facing right now, such as an increasing amount of national debt. He provided a solution to the problem by saying that he had devised a plan that would eliminate a possible $3.4 trillion in debt. This organizational pattern assisted in him using deductive reasoning. He would list complications with an issue; if we start reducing spending to prevent the national debt from growing we could possibly hurt our economy and slip us back into a recession, which would increase jobless claims and once again scare consumers from spending money. After listing issues, he would then lead up to a solution to the issues; he then stated that if we focus on getting value out of our dollars spent and reducing it over a period of time instead of all at once that we could prevent our country from slipping into an economic recession once again. Deductive reasoning was used by explaining an idea that is generally known throughout America, our countrys debt is

continually increasing, then President Obama listed specific plans to tackle this issue; reduce spending over time and fight for a better value for each dollar spent, he wanted to focus on long-term planning. This organizational pattern was very effective in getting his message across to voters. They now understood his exact plans to tackle Americas largest issues. They knew they had a choice. The audience responded very well to President Obamas remarks. When he initially walked out on stage the entire crowd started chanting, Four More Years! Insinuating that the President should be elected four more years. Many times throughout his time speaking the audience would give a standing ovation because they resonated with his words so well. The audience shared in Obamas vision for America. Generally the audience loved him speaking many whistles, chanting, and clapping was heard from the audience. They would even share in his laughing when he told some jokes. Inside the conference room at CTEC where I watched his speech, the audience was very bored, and never really shared in the Presidents words. Supporting Material Ethos Ethos is defined as moral character of the speaker. Barack Obama has graduated from college, has been a lawyer, has been a senator for Illinois, and now has been President for more than three years. That speaks of his character very highly! This man is running to be the President, but he already has been for three years. The President is very trustworthy in his position; he has done so much in his professional career. He demonstrated Ethos by empathizing with audience. He said, If youre sick of hearing I approve this message, well so am I! He recognizes the peoples frustration with politics right now. There are so many ads out there. The President clearly lists out Americas most current and frightening problems; he understands whats wrong with America. He tells them about his Grandmother and Grandfather who fought for there rights as Americans and got a college education and even bought their own home. The President realizes what Americans are frustrated with right now, and understands where theyre coming from. For example he says, For the past decade costs have been rising for Americans, but paychecks have not! He clearly understands what many families are facing right now, high costs, but no wage increase. This shows hes able to recognize problems, and it makes him very credible. I believe Barack Obama because how he presented many of Americas problems with so much understanding and empathy makes me feel like hes truly working for the middle class. He understands whats wrong, and the challenges facing us. He wants to help us eliminate hard times by improving the economy. Hes a college graduate, a lawyer, a senator, and now the President. I truly trust him. Hes been working for our country for many years; through some of the most difficult times many of us will ever face in our lives. This man sees a bigger picture for the United States of America.

Pathos Pathos is defined as persuading by appealing to the audiences emotions. Barack Obama demonstrated Pathos by appealing greatly to hard working Americans. He says, Youre the change! You have the choice. This is your America. Mr. Obama explains to America that the vision he has for America may be harder, but it can be met. Our challenges can be met! The crowd busted into cheers and clapping instantly, this was very emotionally appealing. He also demonstrated emotional appeal by saying that a better America requires Common effort! We all need to do our part as Americans to create a better country. The really dramatic emotional appeal is when he began to talk about individual situations all around the country. For example, We believe that a little girl who's offered an escape from poverty by a great teacher or a grant for college could become the founder of the next Google, or the scientist who cures cancer, or the President of the United States and it's in our power to give her that chance. I instantly got chills when I heard this! The crowd went insane and stood up cheering for a better America. This really appealed to anyone who was watching. We all have our hopes and dreams. He showed that just because youre in the situation youre in right now, doesnt mean you cant be everything youve ever wanted to be. He also summarized what hes already done for America in a really expressive manner by talking about a little girl; You're the reason there's a little girl with a heart disorder in Phoenix who'll get the surgery she needs because an insurance company can't limit her coverage. You did that. He appealed very well to everyones emotions further persuading their vote. Logos Logos is defined as means of persuading through logical reasoning. Barack Obama used logos throughout most of his speech. Every idea, every solution he presented was backed with very logical reasoning that simply made sense. He showed a fair America that he dreams for saying, Everyone needs to play by the same rules; from main street to wall street to Washington D.C. Yep, very simply reasoning. Every one in America really should play by the same rules, so logical. One logical side of his speech talked about the other guy also known as the Republicans in Tampa, he said that theyre always talking about whats wrong with America, and who needs to leave office, but they never refer to exact polices or solutions to all of these problems theyre able to identify. Its just that logical, they can point our problems, but cant find solutions. When talking about the economy he brought up very reasonable ideas, I don't believe that another round of tax breaks for millionaires will bring good jobs to our shores, or pay down our deficit. I don't believe that firing teachers or kicking students off financial aid will grow the economy, or help us compete with the scientists and engineers coming out of China. It is simple logic. Lowering taxes for the rich and firing teachers will just not improve our economy; its as artless as that. Logos is just reaping through his entire speech; hes full of logical ideas.

Delivery Barack Obama is a very prepared public speaker because he knows exactly how to target his audience with logic, emotional appeals, and using his credibility. Hes able to catch the attention of the entire audience and bring them into what hes saying. The visual aids he used in his speech were helpful in adding audience interest. The stage had a podium where he delivered his speech. Behind him was a huge screen that pictured his face throughout the entire speech. The visual aids assisted him in getting his message across to the entire audience. An example of a nonverbal that Barack Obama used in his speech would be his professional appearance. He wore a black suit with a blue tie and white shirt with an American Flag pin. This communicated to us that he was serious about his job, and that he takes pride in our country. He was shaking hands with dignitaries, and giving his family hugs. When talking about serious issues he would point to the camera and change his voice levels. Barack Obama was a natural at changing his voice levels when speaking about different topics. As the audience would cheer, he would slow down and wait for them to calm down. When speaking with conviction, Mr. Obama would slow down the speed of his voice. Constantly moving his hands with conviction showing hes confident in his message. Waving to the public when he first comes out on stage, hes a natural to public speaking. He was constantly panning the crowd making sure he looked at every group in the audience. He used very forceful hand gestures. All of these nonverbal actions effectively assisted in the delivery of his speech Motivation Giving voters a choice between two different fundamental ideas for the future of America was Barack Obamas key in motivating the audience to get out and vote. He was very successful in conveying that we have a choice between two different Americas. The President made this seem like a very serious issue in how he talked about the issues of America. He was constantly reiterating the fact that we do have a choice. We are the ones who are going to create history, make change in America, and lead America to a brighter future. Its completely up to us. President Obama explained to us the two different visions we have America right now. He simply said that we have a choice to choose a better America and continue building off of our previous three years of change, or we can choose to turn back the clocks. This was very successful in motivating the audience to vote for him, and work for others votes! He presented every important issues and how the current state of the issue is not okay. He then gave us some insight into what hes already done to help the issues, and what he will continue to do to fight the issues. He gave America the choice.