A New Age

       This week in class we presented our video projects. These projects were unique because they were unlike any other assignment we have done. I found it to be a great way to present an argument and communicate with the audience in a different way. When giving presentations, we are often confined to a podium, trying our best to engage the audience with hand motions, voice inflection, and word choice. If we are given the chance to use a visual aid, it is often merely a dry PowerPoint presentation with a few slides that show graphs and charts to support the statistics we have just rambled off. And although this method may be very effective given the context of the situation, there are also ways to break from the mold and use new technology to your advantage. The video presentations perfectly exemplified this.
       Visual modes of communication are interesting because there is so much more to consider. The placement of the words, the pictures used, the background colors, and font choice all contribute to how the message is received. In the videos it was also important to consider music choice and the rate of speech. Each of these characteristics was vital in how the messages of the argument were to be received by the audience. The video presentations were also unique because communication took both a central and peripheral route. The arguments presented were able to reach the audience in a different way that a standard speech could not. I found this form of communication to be both effective in conveying messages, as well as entertaining and insightful. Even though these videos were really nothing more than PowerPoint presentations, the extra additions made them seem like a completely new form of communication. As we become more and more dependent of technology in our everyday lives it is interesting to think about how formal speaking presentations will evolve and change in time.