Daniel Gansen Persuasive Speech Outline COMH 121 Topic: Staying Informed Intro Attention Getter: Hello, my name

ame is Daniel Gansen, and today I'd like to talk today about information. We live in a society of information. However, according to a study by the pew research center, only 66% of Americans know who their state's governor is! That means 1/3 of Americans don't even know who runs their state! Reason to Listen With the upcoming presidential election, it is important to make sure that you know enough to make a properly informed decision. You are granting someone the responsibility of running an entire nation, and you should know enough to cast an educated vote. Thesis Statement A society can only make proper decisions when they are properly informed. Credibility statement As a registered voter, I have dedicated a lot of time towards educating myself on current events to cast a better informed vote. I have also researched the best ways to help others get informed. Preview of Points First, I will discuss the benefits of being informed. Next, I will show how society has managed to avoid information on current events. Finally, I will show where to get reliable information, and provide steps to staying

Daniel Gansen Persuasive Speech Outline COMH 121 informed. Body First, let's go over some of the benefits of being informed. You will be better off socially if you are up to date on important current events. Information from credible sources will give you a solid background for discussions and debates among friends and acquaintances. Politically, you will be able to make better decisions when taking a stance on certain types of legislation. This will affect how you vote in, say, the upcoming presidential election (show photo). It will also determine what you tell your representatives when contacting them. Being informed will also help with economic decisions, (show photo) such as companies and markets that are doing well and are wise investment choices. Likewise, markets and businesses that are failing are often exposed as poor investments. With all of these benefits, it is best to explain how society manages to stay uninformed. One reason for this is the general feeling of apathy towards politics. Many avoid current events because they can lead to heated political debates. These are seldom enjoyable, and can cause tensions between friends with different ideals. Another reason is constant distractions such as reality television and social networking websites such as facebook and twitter (show picture). For example, we can all relate to this situation: flipping through channels, and skipping over the talking heads on CNN to get to the latest episode of American Idol or the Big Bang Theory. News shifting towards entertainment is also a contributing factor.

Daniel Gansen Persuasive Speech Outline COMH 121 A simple internet search for news yielded CNN.com Top stories included the funniest moments from campaigns and a ping-pong playing robot. (show picture) Anyone viewing local news will note that all campaign and debate coverage focuses on who campaigned where, and whether or not they are likely to win the state, rather than the issues and candidate's positions. Media is more interested in gathering viewers through the horse race aspect. Despite information being buried, it is out there, and there are ways to find it. Use foreign news sources. Many foreign news sources offer more insight as to what is happening regarding global news. (show picture) Russia Today and BBC are examples of credible global news sources.

Be aware of bias. All news sources will be swayed to the opinion of the writers and editors. Think critically for yourself, and pick through for raw information and facts to draw your own conclusions. When checking facebook in the morning, open a second tab and take a look at what's going on with CNN and BBC. You may be surprised to find that many of the articles are rather interesting, and provide insight as to what is happening worldwide. With only minimal effort, it is not hard to stay up to date on many important issues. Conclusion Review Main Points I went over benefits of being informed.

Daniel Gansen Persuasive Speech Outline COMH 121 Then I discussed reasons that it is easy for society to stay uninformed. Finally, I gave tips on how to stay informed. Restate Thesis It is important to stay informed to make wise political and social decisions. Closure Call to action I strongly urge all of you to budget time for researching current events. It is a simple task that only takes minutes out of your day, and can help you both socially and politically. This is especially important in the upcoming election. Thank you for your time, are there any questions?

REFERENCES www.bbc.com. (july, 2012). Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/ Cnn.com. (2009, October 14). Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/ Pew research center for the people & press. (2007, Apr 15). Retrieved from http://www.peoplepress.org/2007/04/15/public-knowledge-of-current-affairs-little-changed-by-news-andinformation-revolutions/ Rt question more. (2012). Retrieved from http://rt.com/

Daniel Gansen Persuasive Speech Outline COMH 121