A N A LY Z I N G YO U R A U D I E N C E

CHAPTER 5

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

EXCERPTS

• “To the families of those we’ve lost; to all who called them friends; to the students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona:  I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow.”

• “But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized -– at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who happen to think differently than we do -– it’s important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we’re talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds.”

• “I want to live up to her expectations.  (Applause.)  I want our democracy to be as good as Christina imagined it.  I want America to be as good as she imagined it.  (Applause.)  All of us -– we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children’s expectations.  (Applause.)”

AUDIENCE-CENTEREDNESS

• Speeches seek to gain responses from audiences• Shouldn’t imply compromise

• Questions to ask yourself• To whom am I speaking?• What do I want them to know, believe, or do as a result of

my speech?• What is the most effective way of composing and

presenting my speech to accomplish that aim?

THE CHALLENGER ADDRESS

IDENTIFICATION

• Emphasizing common values

• Characteristic of ceremonial speaking• Present in deliberative speaking?

CASE STUDY

YOUR CLASSMATES AS AUDIENCE

• Instructors are not the only audience members

• “The best classroom speeches are those that take the classroom audience as seriously as a lawyer, a politician, a minister, or an advertiser takes an audience.”

• Most speeches will nothave immediateimpact, but they docount.

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF AUDIENCES

• Auditory perception is always selective

• Egocentrism – We hear what we want to hear

• What should you know as a speaker?

DEMOGRAPHIC AUDIENCE ANALYSIS

• Useful tool, but exercise caution

• Common Demographic Factors• Age• Gender• Religion• Sexual Orientation• Racial, ethnic, and cultural background• Group membership

RESPECTING AUDIENCE CULTURES

• Heterogeneity and Diversity• What about homogeneity?

• Assessing audience culture assumes audiences are more than the some of their parts

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

• How do we operationalize diversity?• More than one type?

• Your own cultural dispositions - egocentrism• Gender roles• Who can speak• Appropriate language• Regional differences• Negative Stereotypes

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

• Self-interests• Based on results of action of policy

• Personal interests• Beliefs and values• Prior understanding• Common knowledge and experience

STRATEGIES FOR ANALYZING THE AUDIENCE

• Formal methods• Informal methods• Observation, chatting, etc.

• Simplifying devices• Focus on the general public• Focus on audience roles or topic fields

SITUATIONAL AUDIENCE ANALYSIS

• Builds on demographic analysis• Unique to the speaking situation at hand

• Common Situational Factors• Size• Physical setting• Disposition toward topic• Disposition toward speaker• Disposition toward occasion

ADAPTING TO AUDIENCE

• Before the speech

• During the speech