5 for those in speech and debate or journalism in ...
346842
5 for those in speech and debate or journalism in delving into concluding from witness testimonies of deaths that occurred years ago. I read this book in 9th grade Biology as it was one that was on her shelf for our required book reports. Upon reading this what struck upon me during our conversation was the motive for the Father, and the moment where fear struck her when he was about to kill his own daughter.  That's from one of the witnesses. This is a novel for those who want to grid across the witness testimonies to see which coincide, to draw to a conclusion, and see which contradicts and thereby lacks validity compared to others. At the end, what I felt was that familiar Abraham-Isaac motive of killing one's own son or daughter for mere bet at times, or undefined cash pile or tainted reward at the end but driven to that moment.  Upon the cliffs, there was a mishap as I recall.  The twin thing in the plot is somewhat a bailout I feel, but them doubles can be anyone esp. if parents weren't even aware she had a twin.  If Mrs. is driving this death that came after a tragedy at the time of marriage, she maybe putting something up in the air prior to the wedding that needs to be resolved or reviewed. At the end, a set of confirmed facts come through and at that moment, you get the title of Elephants, and why Elephants in this novel written in 1972 years later during the time of Ford and Carter after the 60s when oil and casinos would become major issues. It had my biology teacher take a sabattical to Saudi Arabia and return, but that's all I remember. Although there was a dog, in the end, the witnesses as workers were the ones who knew and remembered.
4864174
Ms. Powers makes a brilliant and systematic case that free speech is under attack as never before in the U.S. In her trademark voice (see USA today columns) she walks the reader through meticulously documented instances where those who should be most supportive of free speech and open debate (classical liberals) are often the very ones attempting to silence those with whom they disagree. This book is an important read for people from all political and ideological perspectives. Highly recommend.
2927230
As a curriculum and speech writer, this book is a short cut to some fine quotes to illustrate a point. If you're writing papers and want to spiff up your work, this isn't bad. It's as good as Google Search and maybe more convenient.
1263382
This book contains many speeches presented to the US House of Representatives. The book presents these speeches with contextual notes so that the reader may understand the flow of history and what was taking place in the world when the speech was given. This book provides excellent insight in to Dr. Paul's beliefs regarding the Founding Fathers, foreign affairs, the legal basis for US government action with regards to foreign policy, etc.

There seems to a group of people spamming Dr. Paul's book reviews. Please read the reviews with a critical eye.
1451661
A wonderful book for those who want to learn how communication professionals should plan and execute successful strategies for dealing with a crisis.  As Fink points out the question is not whether a company or a political candidate will face a crisis, the question is when.  Fink has worked for many years in the field and his experience in dealing with so many cases is invaluable.  I am using this book in a class I am teaching in strategic communication and it is written in a very systematic and enlightening matter.  Highly recommended.
2836393
I have used this book in my college speech classes with success. It is a brief resource full of gems of wisdom. Chapters 1-5 were basic for my class, the remainder of the book is a resource of "humorous stories, quotations, and anecdotes to energize and transform" the listeners. This book is a desk copy for quick reference when preparing any type of speech.

Woodrow W Nail, DWS
4794165
This book gives a basic guide to making great Public speeches. I find it especially noteworthy that it's composed by an individual for whom English is a second dialect. Exceptionally well done. I'm going to re-read it and set my new information to work.
2804642
This book is a great tool for speech writers. As a writer, you always want to have an attention grabbing opening line. These quotes are a perfect way to grab the listener's attention. I love the fact that the quotes come from such varied people. I will be using this book faithfully.

I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and unbiased review
2886545
During a televised presidential debate in 1992, George H. Bush looked at his wristwatch as a woman from the audience asked a question.  His subsequent attempt to answer her question failed, and those offered by his competitors (Ross Perot and Bill Clinton) were much more on target.  What should he have done differently?

That's one of the real-life examples studied in "In the Line of Fire." Author Jerry Weissman has years of experience coaching high-profile executives in presentation skills.  Invaluable too is his background as a television producer who worked with Mike Wallace, one of the toughest interviewers of all time.  When asked a crucial question in a public forum, a novice may panic and freeze.  Weissman shows how the speaker can control the question, the answer, the questioner, the audience, the time, and himself/herself -- and create and maintain a positive image in the process.

Weissman provides techniques that will help someone defuse hostile inquiries without being defensive, evasive, or contentious.  When you get right down to it, most of these strategies seem obvious and logical.  Rely on absolute truth.  Honor the audience.  Listen effectively.  Paraphrase and restate the Roman Column (the key issue) of the question.  Identify and develop position statements for each red flag issue.  Achieve Topspin. Prepare and practice, practice and prepare.

What makes this book additionally entertaining as well as educational is the use of real-life case studies from the realms of television, sports, and most of all, politics.  After all, "Politicians speak far more often than do mere mortals." (p. 120)  Transcript excerpts and still photos from presidential debates (1960-2004) and official press conferences serve to show what to say and do, and what NOT to say and do.  Here we see the best and the worst of the figures we're all too familiar with:  Lloyd Bentsen, George H. Bush, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Michael Dukakis, Al Gore, John Kerry, Trent Lott, Ross Perot, Colin Powell, Dan Quayle, Ronald Reagan, and Norman Schwarzkopf.  The narrative is an amusing but instructive walk down Memory Lane.  With such prime examples to refer to, we're more apt to remember their successes and failures.

My sole criticism is that the case studies are exclusively MALE.  What, no Hillary Rodham Clinton?  No Geraldine Ferraro?  No Janet Reno?  No Condi Rice?  Maybe women don't make the same mistakes that men do.  <grin>

Nevertheless, "In the Line of Fire" is an engaging read, aimed primarily at those folks who do presentations and then field Q&A sessions afterward. It is relevant to anyone in a position of authority who must deal with the public or with employees or colleagues.  It offers good advice for everybody, even those not running for the presidency of a country, a company, or a community group.  The examples are clear, easy to understand, and empowering.  This book is a good resource to chew on once, mull over, then revisit before walking out to the podium.  An accompanying DVD is planned for release.  It will be a powerful visual tool if archival footage of each case study is included.  [This review was based on an advance copy of the book.]
3213454
The author hits on many good points to help people get over their fears of public speaking. Things like being well prepared will give you a greater confidence. Eat nutritiously the day of your speech and get a good night sleep were simple, yet important factors in making sure your mind is ready to deliver a great speech. He stresses the importance of practicing your speech and having it mostly memorized while leaving room for some freedom to deviate from it. One of the good suggestions for practicing your speech was to join a group such as "Toastmasters" where they teach about public speaking and give speeches to each other. Change volume and tone in your voice to keep the audience interested. Yes I do think that one would over come their fears of public speaking if they apply what Ryan has taught in his book.
595123
Glasser's book is an admirable compilation of the different rules in most of the major countries where reporters would want to operate. It seems to be one of the few books that unifies all the rules for all the different jurisdictions. The book highlights a series of key questions such as the definitions of libel, the abilities of companies to sue on their own behalf or to protect their products, possible restrictions on covering criminal/secret procedures and privacy rules. Drawing on the knowledge of lawyers from the different countries, Glasser organizes their expertise according to these themes.

While the book is very useful and informative, as a reporter I feel it is better reading for news executives rather than the journalists themselves. It would benefit from clear dos and don'ts -- perhaps a list for each country on a single page telling the reader exactly what specific procedures he/she should follow.

But that is a minor point. Overall, it's useful and interesting, and successfully renders complicated legal principles into a straightforward guide.
1690282
It's refreshing to read an assessment of the current transitional period in American journalism that doesn't focus primarily on the "media bias" argument. The author makes clear that this is one of many aspects of what's going on today, and not the most important one. Increasing media competition in recent decades (most recently from the Internet), resource constraints in newsrooms, changing habits of new generations of readers, and the closure, consolidation, and ownership changes of media companies are all much more significant factors.
The author offers a quick but valuable history of American journalism since its earliest days, then focuses more closely on what's been happening in the past half-century while he was growing up in a newspaper family and building his career as a journalist. The history provides important context for the book's theme, demonstrating a bumpy road through numerous transitions that brought us to where we are today - in another challenging transition, different from the ones that preceded it.
Many of the stories presented here were major events that will be familiar to readers, but the author mixes in anecdotes about his own reporting experience, his colleagues' experiences and views, and his family's newspaper in Tennessee. His main points, particularly the distress of "iron core" news reporting and the need to adapt to the Internet era, are made repeatedly, but always adding new perspectives, exposing flaws, and exploring options for saving the news.
I found the book engaging and enlightening. It felt like I was having a long, enjoyable conversation with a seasoned journalist who is passionate about his profession. I hope to have another someday.
1239461
One would think that American universities would be centers of free speech, where all sorts of views could be stated freely.  Well, that hasn't been entirely the case recently.  And this book examines some of the problems that have arisen.

I would have thought that the fundamental issues would be simple.  Most speech is inoffensive.  Some speech is actually illegal (sedition, incitement, or whatever).  The line between illegal speech and legal speech may be a subject of debate, but that line exists somewhere.  And some speech is in between: it is offensive but not illegal.  And those who are offended have plenty of options: they can shun such people, or tell others about their bad manners, and so forth.

As this book points out, once one has rules against offensive speech, not just against intimidation (or worse), that leads to thought control.  And there are some examples of what has been happening along these lines.

One spectacular example is the 1993 "water buffalo" case at the University of Pennsylvania.  A Penn freshman got in trouble for using the term "water buffalo" in response to students who were making too much noise at midnight outside his dormitory.  Although a simple apology from him would have been the most reasonable resolution, Penn made this into a major case.  So did much of the nation!  The result was not only a victory for the accused student, but the removal of the "speech codes" at Penn.  It seems that the speech codes were doomed by the idiotic claims of Penn officials, including the Penn President, that they were merely following due process in the water buffalo case.

Downs describes how speech codes were removed at the University of Wisconsin as well.  And there is some fascinating material about the University of California, Berkeley.  The campus newspaper ran an ad that offended some people, and then compounded the problem by apologizing for it (offending even more folks).  And then, there was a speech by well-known conservative David Horowitz.  An assistant chancellor warned Horowitz that he might be shouted down "because the right of free expression also" belonged to those that disagreed with him!  I find it incredible that such censorship could be called "free expression."  Others were similarly censored just for having "politically incorrect" views.  A striking example was former Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who was prevented from speaking to 2000 waiting ticket holders by a couple of hundred foes of free speech.  One of these people, when challenged about what she had done replied that she didn't "believe in free speech for war criminals."  By the way, given Netanyahu's record, I find such a charge against him ludicrous.  And I wonder if genuine criminals, such as Yasir Arafat, would have been shouted down at Berkeley.

One more topic in the book is the sexual misconduct policy at Columbia University.  That's another university that has a problem with taking political correctness too seriously.  But in this case, the issue was simply that people accused of sexual misconduct were denied due process, including the right to hear the testimony against them or to cross-examine.  That policy eventually had to be scrapped.  Still, the incident serves to show the moral blindness of some of those who create policies on campus.

I found this book very interesting and I strongly recommend it.
2061108
A stroke.  Thank you for that. Also I followed the campaign on MSNBC from the moment Trump accretive media from the escalator at Trump Tower. In another life I was a small town reporter.
In my experience the more a politician has to hide the louder he screams about how unfair the media is. This proves it.
2358526
A Great Read for anyone who tries to communicate via the written word.
4531508
Many other reviewers rate this book with 5 stars & so do I. If you have to persuade people with the written word to spend their hard earned money, this is your definitive how-to guide. Keep in mind its for business related content. If you're an Amazon reviewer or presenting non-commercial content, only some of the authors rules apply. Then, reverting to story telling must be considered on a case-by-case basis, since attention spans are so brief.

I find rhetorical questions can get the reader more involved in the conclusions presented, assuming your product or service can compete in the internet marketplace. Try to think of and answer objections in your FAQ.  Don't forget to focus on benefits to the consumer. If a benefit is important, it needs to be mentioned again with concrete examples. All in all, a book with a lot of tips to digest for online writing success.
1793657
A very good start into the subject of educated, inner city, progressive, left leaning journalists telling the rest of us what we should think, and berating those who do not agree. They stifle debate, shut down moderate, alternative views yet unequivocally espouse theories, while looking down on those who actually have to operate businesses in the real world.
My only criticism is that sometimes Nick tip-toes around firmly criticizing the perpetrators, who are after all some of his own. When this happens you have to read between the lines, and if you aren't always in-the-know (myself included), would miss some vital points.