Week 2: Post 3

Preparing to write this blog post made me think about my first public speaking course in college. Similar to the reflections of over half of my peers in COMM 105P, my instructor came into the first day with the statistics of human fears and public speaking was highest with respondents more open to obtaining a shark bite; and, of course, it’s a bigger fear than the end of life! Oddly, while I never “thought” I had a speech anxiety fear, I surely “felt” it when I embraced the hollow wooden podium for the first time in front of 25 first-year faces. While my post tonight is not about flushing out this concept, I find solace in the memory!

As I stated, I enrolled in my first public speaking class as a first-year student in 2000. One concept I don’t recall learning (which is exciting now) is Alan Monroe’s “five-part organizational plan” (Trenholm, 2008, p. 285) or the motivated sequence. As I was reading how this specialized stock organizational pattern targets “the psychological reactions of receiver” (p. 285), I thought, “Oh my gosh! Fast-paced infomercials…especially at night!” In addition, I began to consider how this pattern could entrap women consumers by positioning its message against stereotypical, but internalized conditioning. For example, consider the times of day (and night) beauty and weight/size-based infomercials targeting women-buyers are dominating breaks in broadcast. I see the “perfect” equation of attention (“Hey! Want to get into that summer bikini, but enjoyed those spring cookies a little too much?”) + need (“Well, why look like this at the beach and have people stare at that tummy and those thighs when you can try QuickieThin and the staring will turn into following because you’ll look so hot people won’t recognize you!”) + satisfaction (“All you have to do is eat two of these cookie bars and a sensible dinner and you’re there!”) + visualization (“You’ll lose 27 lbs in 27 minutes on this plan and look and feel great!”) EQUAL (=) the action step (or purchase) (“Call now…but WAIT! All this for $14.95, plus shipping and handling”). Personally, I find, while the communication strategy is effective (most will buy), the outcome is disastrous-deteriorates self-worth and unhinges self-image.