Speaking to the People

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Archive on 4: Speaking to the People

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A former White House speechwriter journeys through a century of presidential speeches.

Cody Keenan wrote speeches for Barack Obama. Joined by a panel of experts, he goes into the archive to explore a century of broadcast speeches by US presidents.

Cody Keenan wrote speeches with Barack Obama for fourteen years, including four years as Chief of Speechwriting at the White House. Now, along with a panel of expert scholars and fellow speechwriters, he's looking back over a century of broadcast presidential speeches.

On 6th December 1923, President Calvin Coolidge delivered an annual speech to congress that would come to be known as the 'State of the Union' address. The speech was broadcast across the country by radio, and the New York Times reported that Coolidge was ‘heard by more people than the voice of any man in history.’

Cody and his guests look into the story behind some of the most influential speeches in American history, what techniques are at play, what they tell us about the times they were delivered and the men who delivered them.

He's joined by Cara Finnegan, Professor of Communication at the University of Illinois, Dr Allison Prasch, a specialist in presidential rhetoric and foreign policy at the University of Wisconsin and Sara Peri, also a former speechwriter for Barack Obama.

Their selections include the inspiring, the revealing and the surprising. From Franklin Delano Roosevelts intimate Fireside Chats to John F Kennedy rallying the public around the new frontier of space, Dwight D Eisenhower warnings about a 'military industrial complex' to George W Bush making the case for action after 9/11. Cody and Sarada will share stories from their time in the White House and what it's like to write for a president. The panel will also look at speeches from our own era and what they think the future of presidential rhetoric might be.

Produced by Sam Peach

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