Your goal in this speech is to persuade your audience to change their attitudes, values, beliefs, or actions in regard to an important social, political, cultural, or economic issue.
In particular, your job is to, first, identify a pressing problem related to your project and provide evidence the problem exists and is important; and, second, offer a solution to the problem and provide evidence the solution will succeed in decreasing the problem without causing more serious damage. Finally, you should identify what tangible steps your audience can take to help solve the problem.
You should make a quality argument on behalf of your perspective. This is a persuasive speech. You must attempt to persuade the class to believe as you believe on this issue.
Your topic should be presented in a clear, well-organized format. It is critical to develop your ideas and provide relevant researched information. You will need to use at least 6 quality sources in your speech to support your argument. The works used must be cited verbally in your speech (Author, Publication Title, and Exact Date), as well as on a reference page turned in with the outline using APA style guidelines.
Consider these questions as you craft your speech:
- What is the problem?
- How do you know it is a problem? (Could it be interpreted differently?)
- Who does the problem affect? (On a global, national, or local scale)
- What is the scope of the problem?
- What is causing the problem? How do you know that is the cause of the problem?
- What solutions to the problem are available?
- What solutions have been tried in the past and failed? Why did they fail?
- What is the best possible outcome if your solution is tried?
- What is the worst possible outcome if your solution is tried?
- What can you do to minimize the worst possible outcome?
In answering these questions, you will need to do research. That research should function as the evidence you use in the speech.
Purpose:
To persuade my classmates that law enforcement officials should be required to use body cameras at all times.
I. Introduction
- Teaser: Discussion of Michael Brown incident.
- Thesis: Law enforcement officials should be required to wear body cameras.
- Preview Statement: In this speech, I will first discuss the problems that arise from the lack of a video record of police-civilian interactions; second, discuss how that problem is caused by a lack of accountability; and, third, argue body cameras will alleviate this problem.
Transition: Before examining why cameras are so important, let’s look at the problems that arise when cameras are not present.
II. Body
a. Main Point 1: The problems due to a lack of video evidence are significant.
- Decreases credibility of witnesses.
- Allows for police abuse.
- Prevents analysis of incidents for decreasing future incidents.
Transition: Now that we understand the problems, let’s look at some of the causes.
b. Main Point 2: Resistance to the accountability of wearing body cameras is great.
- Resistance from police unions.
- Resistance from governmental bodies.
Transition: Despite this resistance, there are things we can do to reduce this problem.
c. Main Point 3: Solutions are available at the federal, local, and personal level.
- Federal level
- Local level
- Personal level
Transition: So, as you can see, requiring body cameras is necessary.
III. Conclusion
- Restate Main Points: Serious problems arise when video evidence is not available, resistance to such accountability is great, however, we can take steps to solve this problem.
- Restate Thesis: Law enforcement officials should be required to wear body cameras.
- Clincher: Story of how protests and bad blood could have been prevented through body camera technology
