Speechwriting News You Can UseDon’t call us speechwriters. We’re coaches

A new C-suite euphemism masks the sordid reality of speechwriting; a critic rips vague “vision” speeches written by U. S. speechwriters; and Al Gore reveals his co-writer

Speechwriters are a hot commodity these days, but the C-suite doesn’t want to call them speechwriters anymore—no, no—instead they’re “executive coaches.” Blogger Jane Genova reported that new ads for speechwriters … sorry, executive coaches … appear every few days on e-mails from the New York Speechwriters’ group.

“Speeches are definitely the tool to generate action” among executives, Genova wrote in her blog Speechwriter. “I use the term ‘speech’ as an umbrella one to denote whatever is attributed to the executive [and] that could include PowerPoint presentations, town hall meetings, conferences calls with security analysts, testimony, bylined articles, opinion—editorials and books, blogs, Web site content, talking points, letters, and employee communications.”