A POCKET GUIDE TO PUBLIC SPEAKING 5TH EDITION Chapter 4 Ethical Public Speaking

Demonstrate Competence and Character Ethics derived from Greek word ethos. Ethos means “character.” Ethos is the appeal of reliability. Positive ethos includes being trustworthy, competent, objective, well prepared, and enthusiastic towards your audience.

Demonstrate Competence and Character (cont.) Audiences trust a speaker who has source credibility. Solid grasp of the subject Sound reasoning skills Honest and straightforward Genuinely interested in listeners’ welfare

Respect Your Listeners’ Values Our ethical conduct reflects our values. Values can conflict. Difficult to talk about certain topics Anticipate the audience’s range of values. Demonstrate respect for audience’s values.

Contribute to Positive Public Discourse Involves issues of importance to community Ethical speech advances constructive goals. Steers clear of invective (verbal attacks) Avoids arguments that target a person Avoids arguments built upon fallacies

Use Your Rights of Free Speech Responsibly The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech. Certain types of speech are illegal: Incitement or “fighting words” Defamatory speech Speech that invades a person’s privacy Hate speech—offensive verbal or nonverbal communication

Use Your Rights of Free Speech Responsibly (cont.) When is language defamatory? Public figures Requires reckless disregard for the truth Private persons Easier to assert claims of defamation Speaker has burden of proving truth

Observe Ethical Ground Rules Infuse dignity and integrity into speeches. Dignity ensures listeners feel respected. Integrity signals your incorruptibility. Adhere to pillars of character. Be trustworthy, respectful, responsible, and fair.

Avoid Plagiarism Plagiarism is Presenting another person’s information as your own; Using others’ ideas/words without acknowledgement; Copying material from a source.

Orally Acknowledge Your Sources Sources should be acknowledged orally. For each source, include Type of source Author or origin of the source Title or description of the source Date of the source

Orally Acknowledge Your Sources (cont.) Include all references in a bibliography. Websites must also be cited. Common knowledge is an exception. Information known by many people

Citing Quotations, Paraphrases, and Summaries Three ways of presenting others’ ideas Direct quotations (repeating information verbatim) Paraphrase (restating someone else’s ideas) Summary (brief overview of another’s ideas)

Fair Use, Copyright, and Ethical Speaking Copyright (legal protection for authors, artists) Copyrighted materials may require permission. Not subject to copyright Public domain works Federal government publications

Fair Use, Copyright, and Ethical Speaking (cont.) Doctrine of fair use Permits limited use of copyrighted works No permission needed for purposes of Scholarship or teaching Criticism or comment News reporting or research

Fair Use, Copyright, and Ethical Speaking (cont.) Provide credit even with fair use. Copyright symbol (©) required for visual aids Creative Commons licenses Attribution (must credit the author) Noncommercial (noncommercial purposes only) No derivative works (only verbatim works)