All A-Twitter Over Ghostwriters

When the New York Times reported recently that fans were all “a-twitter” because celebrities were using ghostwriters to handle their Twitter accounts, I had to chuckle. Speechwriters, a/k/a ghostwriters for speakers, have been dealing with the same kind of public dismay for decades.

As the article pointed out, stars like rapper 50 Cent is just one of many who hire writers to keep in touch with fans via Twitter. One of the rapper’s writers, a fellow named Chris Romero, said his client “doesn’t actually use Twitter, but the energy is all him.”

That pretty well sums it up for speechwriters as well. In an ideal situation, speakers take an active role in working with a writer in the preparation of a speech. The actual text, if done properly and with plenty of input from the speaker, takes on the tone, voice and phrasing of the speechmaker. Again, the energy is all him (or her).

Unfortunately, most speakers who use speechwriters don’t have the luxury of devoting a lot of time to their speeches. That’s why they hire writers to take care of the research and create clear and organized prose for them to deliver.

In most cases, speech drafts are reviewed and edited by a team of people who work for the same organization as the speaker. And then it’s up to the speaker to put his personal touch on the remarks.

As the ghostwriters for the stars have found out, knowing their client is essential to their jobs. The same is true for speechwriters. The better they know their speaker and the more they can collaborate, the more the resulting speeches will be true to the speaker’s intent.

In a Tizzie Over Teleprompters

President Obama has taken a lot of flack for using a teleprompter when he speaks, but I suspect there are many good reasons that he relies on them. For one thing, he is keenly aware that every word he utters will be analyzed, repeated and re-broadcast dozens, perhaps hundreds of times. He wants to choose his words carefully and stay on message, and a teleprompter helps him achieve that goal.

Teleprompters are also effective when addressing large audiences, as the President does almost every time he speaks. With rare exceptions, his speeches are broadcast on television and beamed across the country and often across the globe. Teleprompters are made for such large audiences because the viewers/listeners can’t really see the prompter itself. Likewise, they are a distraction to smaller audiences and people in the same room with the speaker.

One thing that many may not realize about these speech tools – also known as autocues -- is that they are difficult to use. It takes a tremendous amount of practice – both as a speaker and with the prompter – to deliver a speech effectively while looking at rolling text.

Speakers who use this equipment need to know their speech very well, rehearse it often and use short sentences, since only a few lines of a speech appear on the prompter.

Obama isn’t the only President to earn notoriety for his use of a teleprompter. Bill Clinton had a heart-stopping experience with one during a 1993 address to a joint session of Congress. He was to unveil his plan for health care reform, and he had revised and rewritten the speech until the moment he left for the capitol. In fact, he continued revising it on the ride down Pennsylvania Avenue. He arrived late for his speech and in the ensuing confusion the wrong version began rolling on the glass plates.

Before he began speaking and while members of the House and Senate were giving him a long ovation, he told Al Gore, who was sitting behind him on the dais, that the wrong speech was on the prompter. Luckily, Clinton knew essentially what he wanted to say and was able to speak extemporaneously for seven minutes before the correct speech began rolling.