Talking About Injustice… and Other Topics
I recently revisited a book I received a long time ago called Talk Like Ted.
In it, they do case studies of some of the most successful Ted Talks. One of them was Bryan Stevenson’s “We Need To Talk About an Injustice.” It received the longest standing ovation for a Ted Talk at the time.
Bryan Stevenson never mentions this during his presentation, but his grandmother is Rosa Parks. You get the feeling that he comes from a long line of people who are not only emotionally convicted, but carry a magnetic, influential presence. He was able to move this crowd, not through logical persuasion or neatly designed PowerPoint slides, but simply through connecting his audience to the importance of identity through personal storytelling.
The author ofTalk Like Ted broke down the three persuasive elements into three main categories that all influential public speakers use today:
- Ethos (sometimes referred to as an appeal to ethics), then, is used as a means of convincing an audience via the authority or credibility of the persuader, be it a notable or experienced figure in the field or even a popular celebrity.
- Pathos (appeal to emotion) is a way of convincing an audience of an argument by creating an emotional response to an impassioned plea or a convincing story.
- Logos (appeal to logic) is a way of persuading an audience with reason, using facts and figures.
Bryan Stevenson’s Ted Talk was almost 60% pathos.
He starts off with a seemingly innocuous story about growing up with his grandmother telling him he was special—only to find out she told all the grandkids that, but Bryan took it to heart. He uses this light, touching tone to set the stage for something much more important—that inequality and racism in this country have led to the imprisonment of too many poor, black youth and that their identity is unfairly judged based on one moment in their lives. Their lives are effectively ruined.
He then ends with another story, about being in the courtroom(Stevensonis a lawyer) and having a janitor burst into the room simply to remind the boy at the stand to“Keepyour eye on the prize. Hold on.”
So ends his presentation:
“I’ve come to TED because I believe that many of you understand that the moral arc of the universe is long, but it bends toward justice.That we cannot be full, evolved human beings until we care about human rights and basic dignity. That all of our survival is tied to the survival of everyone. That our visions of technology and design and entertainment and creativity have to be married with visions of humanity, compassion and justice. And more than anything, for those of you who share that, I’ve simply come to tell you to keep your eyes on the prize, hold on.”
It moved the room. He had touched something much deeper in them. He spoke about his work with passion and intimacy and connected with his audience on a human level.
This kind of storytelling is exactly what we strive to develop in our clients when we form an identity for their brand. It is through strong identity and impactful storytelling that you can reach directly into the heart of your audience.