Page 315 - Between One and Many The Art and Science of Public Speaking

282 Part 3 Putting Theory Into Practice

President Bush was often criticized for his speaking In his 2007 State of the Union address Presi-
delivery as this photo from 2001 depicts. dent Bush displayed confi dent delivery.

Justifi ed or not, few politicians in recent history have had the delivery of their
public speeches scrutinized as much as those of President George W. Bush. Pun-
dits and comedians alike have criticized his posture and facial expression when
speaking, as well as his tone and pronunciation. Thus it was with professional in-
terest that we read several critiques of President Bush’s 2007 State of the Union
address in which experts in communication and linguistics noted that his non-
verbal communication, especially, had changed for the better.
The comments of University of Nevada, Las Vegas, professor Joseph Valen-
zano typifi ed the responses of the experts. Valenzano claims that the arrogance
and cockiness noted by critics in previous Bush speeches was absent in his 2007
State of the Union speech.

He used to have the forward lean, (this) half-cocked little smile, like I’ve got you. But
he didn’t do it once. He stood there straight, never once leaning over. Very profes-
sional, probably the most professional speech he’s ever delivered. There was the
perception of him being more humble. 2

The change in President Bush’s style of delivery is not surprising. In this age of
high stake politics, it’s not uncommon for visible public fi gures to get help with
the delivery of their speeches. Besides politicians, many CEOs of Fortune 500
companies are coached on their style of delivery; the goal is to communicate an
image that isn’t simply professional but also warm and engaging. Their coaches