ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 1

Transcription

1 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 1 Analysis of the Components of the TED Genre John Holden Hershey Syracuse University

2 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 2 Ideas shape our world; they are the philosophical foundation for new practices and accomplishments. The company known as TED claims that they share, ideas worth spreading over their platform comprised of video lectures that range in length anywhere from five to twenty minutes. The mean length of a TED Talk is significantly shorter than that of a traditional academic lecture. For this reason, many stewards of academia believe that these talks share minimal importance in current educational practices. TED Talks follow a uniform structure to convey each argument so that the audience is both emotionally and intellectually transfixed on the presented subject matter. Because of the way that TED Talks exploit this practice, viewers are shielded from the realization that they are learning less information than they do from traditional academic lectures. The speaker plays an essential role in the TED genre in how their presentation methods and their analysis of their research shape the audience s perception of the information that is being presented. The twenty-first century is a period characterized by information overload in which many students feel overwhelmed. Professors do their best to present a multitude of information, but their methods of presentation often affects how much information students learn. To present at a TED conference, one must be an expert in their field and an exceptionally persuasive speaker. Bratton (2013) argues that presentation is an essential facet when trying to further an argument. He says, The key rhetorical device for TED Talks is a combination of epiphany and personal testimony. This idea exemplifies the way in which a TED lecturer somewhat manipulates their audience. Bratton (2013) signifies the importance of persuading an audience to identify to the ideas suggested by the presenter. When the speaker indicates a personal stake in the information that is being conveyed the audience is more likely to think critically about the topic s application to their own lives. This level of understanding is significant when examining the effectiveness of

3 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 3 a TED speaker or lecture. Personal testimony is an important feature of every TED Talk and this is seen through Adichie s (2009) presentation. Adichie (2009) begins her talk by eliciting a personal anecdote. Many speakers in the TED genre begin their talks this way because it establishes a sense of credibility between them and the audience. Even though the physical audience is composed of accomplished people, for the other people watching at home it is important to rectify the idea that the speaker s talk is not beyond their level of comprehension. McWhorter (2013) also utilizes this practice in the aspect that his talk focuses on texting within communication. By either choosing a topic that is highly relatable or opening with a personal experience the TED presenters open a window into the psyches of their audience. One crucial difference between TED Talks and academic lectures is how the information is presented and how much of the information is tangible. Lectures are typically minutes while TED Talks rarely span past 20 minutes. In the article, Should TED Talks be Teaching Us Something (Romanelli, Cain, McNamara 2014), the authors explore the dichotomy between TED Talks and traditional lectures. They depict this dichotomy by saying, [TED Talks] are in many ways the antithesis of traditional lectures. One reason for this is because TED Talks generate a new philosophy of learning. They promote the concept that students should teach themselves outside of class almost in a Montessori type of standard. TED Talks focus on the audience comprehending the main points of a talk while they should also extract different applications to utilize in their own lives. Ahmad (2010) explores the novelty of writing personal letters rather than using forms of digital communication. has changed societal standards of communication to an extent because of its practicality. However, Ahmad (2010) talks about how writing personal letters can make you stand out of the crowd. Ahmad (2010) presents this information in his talk to show from his experience that if others follow suit, they too can be as

4 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 4 successful as he has through his methods. This is a common theme of many Ted Talks. The presenter will elicit a personal experience that has a real world application and back it up with different research methods. As opposed to professors that teach through traditional academic lectures, TED speakers present a different attitude that resonates with current learners. Professors are expected to lecture on different material several times throughout the week for extended periods of time. Because of this it is difficult for them to motivate outside learning as opposed to a TED speaker. Given the time allotment of twenty minutes, a TED speaker can use a plethora of energy to convey an idea in an exciting way similar to how Michel and Aidan (2011) or Zuckerman (2010) do in their talks. Michel and Aidan (2011) measure cultural trends throughout history in their analysis of writing, a topic that does not appeal to the average learner. However, throughout their demeanor and recognizable excitement for their topic, it is hard to not become interested in their presentation. Even if a topic initially appears to be dull, the speaker plays a role in making sure that they engage their learners so that they become interested in it. Heller (2012) shows how Zoref engaged the audience by having a Bull on stage during his talk. Immediately, anyone in the crowd would be attracted to this sight. However, even though visual props are limited in most talks, TED lecturers make sure that they maintain a specific attitude throughout their talk so that their ideas are perceived in the way that they want them to be. One component of the TED genre that all talks share is their uniformity in structure. Heller (2012) does an exceptional job in exposing this structure through his analysis of the industry that is TED. One reason for TED s rapid growth has been its increasing popularity due to the attainability of their presentations. Heller (2012) suggests that all talks begin with an opening of personal address, to solidify the topic, followed by a personal narrative to register the

5 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 5 speaker s idea with their audience. Wales (2005) begins his talk on Wikipedia by suggesting the idea that, [every] single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. Wales (2005) suggests that this idea is profound to an extent, but in all actuality because of his comparisons to Encyclopedia Britannica, which most of the audience was familiar with, the idea appears to be ordinary. Adichie (2009) also follows suit with the way that she opens with two contrasting personal narratives. Heller (2012) goes on to talk about how speakers present their research in an applicable way and then suggest potential applications. Zuckerman (2010) suggests potential applications for his talk by showing that if an NFL player can find a way to assert his place in the global world through traveling to different places and training with different sports teams, the average person can do so also. Traveling the world, nation by nation, week by week, is not realistic so Zuckerman (2010) suggests that one can find their place in the world by experiencing different foods or music. Zuckerman (2010) drives his thesis home by suggesting potential applications for his listeners, in turn making his speech more memorable. Heller (2012) ends his analysis of the structure of the TED genre by stating the importance of the conclusion. This part of the speech leaves the audience with a final thought, something new to think about. The importance of the conclusion in the TED genre is central to why the talks are so effective. Each speaker takes one final shot in solidifying his or her argument. At first glance, TED Talks appear to provide a plethora of knowledge, however through supplementary analysis it becomes apparent that these talks provide more inspiration than education. TED Talks do inspire viewers, but they utilize a practice that distracts the viewer from the actual body of information that they are being exposed to. Bratton (2013) cites that people are more likely to be interested in a new topic if it is inspiring. He says, I was at a presentation that an astrophysicist, gave to a potential donor. I thought the presentation was lucid and

6 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 6 compelling After the talk the sponsor said to him, I'm gonna pass because I just don't feel inspired. The potential donor goes on to explain how he would have been more interested if the astrophysicist would have been more charismatic in his pitch. The donor cites Malcolm Gladwell as someone who portrays relevant information in an interesting way but Bratton (2013) disagrees with the donor s ideas. Bratton (2013) argues that it is more important to focus on the actual knowledge at hand rather than how it is portrayed by the speaker. Ted Talks generally captivate audiences on an emotional level, which is one reason the videos generate so much buzz. The talks connect to the audience on an emotive level to inspire them to implement the talk in their personal lives. This emotional constriction captures an audience to the point at which they focus less on whether or not they are learning new information. However, even though Ted Talks are inspiring, they consistently lack the knowledge rendered in traditional academic lectures. TED Talks do lack the traditional plethora of information that academic lectures provide in their hour-long sagas, however this does not mean that they do not have a place in current pedagogical practice. When used correctly, TED Talks have the ability to effectively convey information to produce a springboard for ideas. Their structure and developmental process may seem daunting to professors of academia, but there is no reason to write them off as impracticable. If they were to be combined with traditional lectures they could help develop different ideas that require critical thinking. The TED genre has created a new way of learning; one that the digital age has grown fond of, but it s integration into traditional pedagogical practice is still a work in progress.

7 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 7 References Adichie, C. (2009, July). Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The dange or a single story [Video file]. Retrieved from Ahmad, O. (2010, February). Omar Ahmad: Political change with pen and paper [Video file]. Retrieved from Aiden, E and J, Michel. (2011, July). Jean-Baptiste Michel + Erez Lieberman Aiden: What we learned from 5 million books [Video file]. Retrieved from Bratton, B. "We Need to Talk about TED Benjamin Bratton." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 30 Dec Web. 6 Oct Fitzgerald, A. (2013, July). Andrew Fitzgerald: Adventures in Twitter fiction [Video file]. Retrieved from Heller, N. "Listen And Learn - The New Yorker." Listen and Learn. The New Yorker, 9 July Web. 6 Oct McWhorter, J. (2013, February). John McWhorter: Txting is killing language JK!!! [Video file]. Retrieved from

8 ANALYSIS OF THE COMPONENTS OF THE TED GENRE 8 Romanelli, F., Cain, J., and McNamara, P. Should TED Talks Be Teaching Us Something? American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education Trott, M. (2006, February). Mena Trott: Meet the founder of the blog revolution [Video file]. Retrieved from Wales, J. (2005, July). Jimmy Wales: The birth of Wikipedia [Video file]. Retrieved from Zuckerman, E. (2010, July). Ethan Zuckerman: Listening to global voices [Video file]. Retrieved from