Behind the Scenes of Public Speaking
The "making of" Behind the Scenes of Public Speaking
Pre–Production
The Concept
The idea for making "Behind the Scenes of Public Speaking" comes from my experience teaching college–level public speaking courses and watching movies on DVD format.
From my experience teaching public speaking, I was aware of the ancillary materials available from publishers of public speaking textbooks. These materials often include samples of student speeches in VHS format. After viewing many videotapes, I found them lacking in two important areas. First, most of the videotaped speeches are not particularly interesting from a visual perspective. Oftentimes, the speeches are recorded using one camera without a camera operator and result in a "talking head" presentation. Second, the supplemental materials focus on a "finished product," that is, the final version of the speech. Consequently, students in a public speaking course gain little or no insight into the creative process that went into preparing the presentation.
To address the first issue, I decided to videotape the final speeches using three cameras. This would allow me to make jump cuts during the editing process and avoid the "talking head" problem. To address the second issue, and get a sense of the creative process, I tried to imitate the "director’s cut" DVD, where you can watch a movie and hear commentary from the director. So, I decided to videotape interviews with the speaker about the rhetorical choices she made in each of her presentations and how she selected and researched her topic.
Thus, the concept was born.
Selecting Participants
Behind the Scenes of Public Speaking is a production of the Agnes Scott College Speaking Center. Therefore, I wanted speaking center tutors as participants in the project. Ashley and Jasmine lived in the Atlanta area and had the most flexible schedules during the production phase of the project, so they were selected. I’m not really sure how Ashley became the speaker and Jasmine the interview, but perhaps Ashley drew the short straw.
Selecting a Topic
In the public speaking course I teach at Agnes Scott, the focus is on deliberative rhetoric and students work with one topic for all of their speeches. Topics students select must be current controversial issues or social problems. Examples of topics from previous classes include the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, African–American women with HIV, Patriot Dollars (campaign finance), crisis in education among Native–American school children, and active euthanasia.
I encourage students to find a topic they are passionate about. For Ashley, it was a recent bill passed by the Georgia legislature and signed by governor Sonny Perdue. House Bill 89, a very controversial piece of legislation, expanded the rights of licensed gun owners to carry concealed weapons into more locations than previously allowed.
Brainstorming Questions on the Topic
After selecting a topic and reading some general information about the issue, Ashley generated a list of questions she should investigate in doing her research on Georgia House Bill 89. The questions are intended to focus the investigation on relevant facts, issues and perspectives on the topic. This is a required exercise in our public speaking course. Take a moment and read through her initial list of questions below.
- What does GA House Bill 89 change about carrying guns in Georgia?
- Where are guns permitted and what sites are still gun-free?
- Why did Governor Perdue endorse House Bill 89?
- What is the House/Senate roll call on the bill’s passing?
- What did the preceding GA gun law allow?
- What are concealed carry laws?
- What must a Georgian do to become licensed for concealed carry?
- Who may be approved to carry a gun in Georgia?
- Who is not allowed to carry a gun in Georgia?
- How does Georgia compare to other states with similar concealed carry legislation?
- How many states does GA follow in its passing of a concealed carry law?
- Did any state in particular initiate this gravitation toward more permissive concealed carry laws?
- Who are the proponents of GA House Bill 89? Why do they support the bill?
- Who are the opponents of GA House Bill 89? Why do they contest the bill?
- What are the intended consequences of House Bill 89?
- What are the unintended consequences?
- What is a “parking lot” law?
- How does House Bill 89 affect business owners?
- What choices do business owners have in the observance of HB 89’s provisions?
- What studies/statistics were used to support the passing of House Bill 89?
- How has the Second Amendment been interpreted to either support or debunk the bill?
- What precedent does United States v. Miller set for the interpretation of the Second Amendment?
- Does Heller follow suit?
- Can any areas within the Bill of Rights be used to discredit GA House Bill 89?
- How stringent are violations of the bill considered under the law?
- What GA representatives are most responsible for the passing of House Bill 89?
- What are the statistics on workplace crimes and gun-related accidents in workplaces that allow guns versus workplaces that do not?
- Do citizens in different parts of the state view an increased presence of guns differently?
- Does this bill pose a distinct, unequal burden on certain citizens and regions of the state or does it affect Georgians equally?
- How have established concealed carry laws played out in other states?
- How many times per year are guns used to commit crimes in the United States?
- How many times per year are guns used for self-defense in the U.S. each year?
- What is a “shall issue” state?
- What is a “may issue” state?
- How has the history of the gun debate progressed in the U.S.?
Outline, Feedback, Revision . . .
After thoroughly researching her topic, Ashley crafted and sent me an outline for her first speech, the speech of significance. As you can see from the image below, I made suggestions (in red) and returned the outline to her. During this phase of the process, most of our communication was via email and telephone. As she discusses in one of the interviews, she revised the outline four times before presenting the speech. This is an extremely important part of the process of learning how to craft an oral presentation. I encourage students to seek out feedback during all stages of the creative endeavor.
