Contemporary Public Speaking

Gehrke and Foley believe student speakers are most successful when they draw on their individual standpoints and unique experiences to find their power and purpose in public speaking. Contemporary Public Speaking builds students’ confidence and skills, inviting them to view their intersectional identities as the very strengths that will help them succeed—and it features many examples of young speakers who have successfully done so and used public speaking to enact change. Robust, practical advice for speaking in person and online helps students navigate today’s digital world, and revisions to the Second Edition make it even easier for students to use. Highlights of the Second Edition’s new content:New “Tech Talk” boxes address digital frontiers like AI and social media analytics, offering you coverage if you teach these tools in your courses while keeping the main text focused on core communication principles and strategies. Updated “Speaker Spotlight” boxes are now focused on how each speaker illustrates the effective strategies from the chapter. NEW speakers and topics include musician Jelly Roll on addiction, Veterans Affairs psychologist Dr. Minette Beckner on PTSD, a panel of women on navigating careers in STEM, and Miss Kansas winner Alexis Smith on evoking compassion. New chapter openers introduce students to four new speakers and ideas: Data scientist and AI ethicist Joy Buolamwini (Ch. 3: Ethics and Credibility)? Palestinian peace activist Aziz Abu Sarah (Ch. 4: Listening and Responding) Low-vision entrepreneur and disability advocate Rebecca Rosenberg (Ch. 13: Presentation Aids and Slides) Conservative climate advocate Benji Backer?(Ch. 16: Persuading and Motivating)Based on extensive feedback from instructors who assigned the First Edition, the Second Edition makes the advice in Contemporary Public Speaking easier for students to use, including: New coverage and a New “Try This” exercise on effective time management to help students better plan and prepare their presentations. A streamlined discussion of publics features practical new advice to guide students through understanding their publics. An expanded toolbox of practical research advice guides student through the research process. A streamlined and clearer discussion of outlining prepares students to write outlines for preparing and delivering presentations. A more strategic and applied section on language presents topics like code-switching and code-meshing as strategies for addressing audiences.

• Publication date: 1 July 2026
• Page count: 544
• Dimensions: Height 204 mm; Width 257 mm; Thickness 19 mm
• Publisher: WW Norton & Co
• Format: SA
• ISBN-13: 9781324119586