Presentation Technology in the Age of Electronic Eloquence: From Visual Aid to Visual Rhetoric

Attention to presentation technology in the public speaking classroom has grown along with its contemporary use, but instruction generally positions the topic as a subset of visual aids. As contemporary public discourse enters an age of electronic eloquence, instructional focus on verbal communication might limit students’ capacity to effectively participate in an evolving public sphere. Instruction that more fully integrates visual, verbal, and haptic forms of communication might provide a better foundation for effective civic participation in the media age.