Ronald Reagan, President of the United States made the Challenger Disaster speech. According to Mieczkowski, Ronald Reagan gave the speech from the oval office at the White House on January 28, 1986 (54). Reagan’s speech core purpose was to send condolences to families, friends, and the country at large, as they were affected by the accident. As the current president, Reagan took the burden on making the speech to show his support, and the country’s support to those affected by the disaster. The speech revealed that Reagan was a masterful communicator. Reagan was faced with an intimidating communication circumstance instantly after the space shuttle challenger disaster.
Ronald Reagan uses words like “we” and “our” in a repetitive manner. These words give citizens of America a sense of contribution to the issue at hand. He repeatedly uses we, which appealed to the audience’s feelings and gave Ronald a chance to emphasize that they were in it all of them. Reagan gave the speech at a medium rate, but sometimes he used a slow pace while making a point; he speaks softly at a constant volume. Reagan’s tone is sorrowful, supportive, and sympathetic. Reagan uses facial expressions, which played a significant role in his speech. Reagan also maintained direct eye contact with the camera.
Ronald Reagan’s speech was effective because he used logos to appeal to logic, pathos to appeal to emotion, and ethos to appeal to authority. Reagan used pathos severally in his speech; for example, he said,” For the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the full impact of this tragedy” He also used ethos; for example, he said, “We will continue to fight.” Reagan’s speech was successful because he used excellent speaking skills that were persuasive and used sorrowful moods while the moods were sorrowful.
Works Cited
Mieczkowski, Yanek. “Reagan Runs: His Campaigns for the Presidency, 1976, 1980, and 1984.” A Companion to Ronald Reagan, edited by Andrew L. Johns, Wiley Blackwell, 2015, pp. 54-70.
