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A speechwriter is a person who is hired to prepare and write speeches that will be delivered by another person. Speechwriters are employed by many senior-level elected officials and executives in the government and private sectors. They can also be employed to write for weddings and other social occasions.

Skills and training

A speechwriter typically works at the highest levels of government or businesses and directly with political leaders or executives to determine the points, themes, positions, or messages that should be included in a speech, and usually to author the speech itself. Speechwriters need to be able to accept criticism and comments on the different drafts of the speech, and be able to incorporate the proposed changes into the draft. Speechwriters have to be able to work on several different speeches at once, and manage their time so that they can meet demanding deadlines for finishing the speech on time.^[1] Speechwriters must also be able to accept anonymity, because with few exceptions, speechwriters are not officially credited or acknowledged. This aspect creates a dilemma for historians and compilers of speech anthology; namely, when some significant phrase gains popularity such as John F. Kennedy's "ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country," whether credit be given to Kennedy, to speechwriter Ted Sorensen, or to both?

While there is a guild called "The UK Speechwriters' Guild" for professional speechwriters, they do not usually have specific training in the area or field for which they are writing speeches. Instead, speechwriters often have a broad understanding of basic economics, political roles, and policy issues, which make them generalists who are able to "translate" complex economic and policy issues into a clear message for the general public. As with many other writing occupations, most speechwriters do not have specific training in their writing craft. Instead, speechwriters often develop their speech writing skills by combining a general liberal arts education, such as political science, philosophy, or English literature, with a variety of work experience in politics, public administration, journalism, or a related field.

Speechwriting process

Writing a speech involves several steps. A speechwriter has to meet with the executive and the executive's senior staff to determine the broad framework of points or messages that the executive wants to cover in the speech. Then, the speechwriter does his or her own research on the topic to flesh out this framework with anecdotes and examples. The speechwriter will also consider the audience for the speech, which can range from a town-hall meeting of community leaders to an international leaders' forum. Then the speechwriter blends the points, themes, positions, and messages with his or her own research to create an "informative, original and authentic speech" for the executive.^[1]

The speechwriter then presents a draft version of the speech to the executive (or the executive's staff) and makes notes on any revisions or changes that are requested. If the speechwriter is familiar with the topic and the positions and style of the executive, only small changes may be needed. In other cases, the executive may feel that the speech does not have the right tone or flow, and the entire speech may have to be re-drafted. Professional speechwriter Lawrence Bernstein writes:

Some clients have called with six months to spare, others with four hours to go; some want to meet up first, others want coaching afterwards; quite a few did everything by email and we’ve never even spoken.^[2]

The delivery of the speech is part of the challenge speechwriters face when crafting the message. Executive speechwriter Anthony Trendl writes:

Speechwriters specialize in a kind of writing that merges marketing, theater, public relations, sales, education and politics all in one presentation.^[3]

Notable speechwriters

Some of the world's most notable political speechwriters include:

Australia

Don Watson wrote for Prime Minister Paul Keating

Bangladesh

Md. Nazrul Islam, Secretary wrote for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

Chile

Jaime Guzmán wrote for Chilean military dictator Augusto Pinochet^[4]^[5]

Europe

Henri Guaino wrote for French President Nicolas Sarkozy
Sir Ronald Millar wrote for British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher

Nigeria

Reuben Abati wrote for President Goodluck Jonathan
Olusegun Adeniyi wrote for President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua
Farooq Kperogi wrote for President Olusegun Obasanjo

United States

Michael Anton wrote for President Donald Trump
Aram Bakshian wrote for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford
Samuel Beer wrote for President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Josef Berger wrote for Presidents Harry S. Truman and Lyndon B. Johnson
Pat Buchanan wrote for President Richard Nixon
Christopher Buckley wrote for President George H. W. Bush
Andrei Cherny wrote for President Bill Clinton
William Dodd wrote for President Woodrow Wilson
Anthony R. Dolan wrote for President Ronald Reagan
Ben T. Elliott wrote for President Ronald Reagan
George Elsey wrote for President Harry Truman
William B. Ewald Jr. wrote for President Dwight Eisenhower
James Fallows wrote for President Jimmy Carter^[6]
Jon Favreau wrote for President Barack Obama
Andrew Ferguson wrote for President George H. W. Bush
Charlie Fern wrote for President George W. Bush and for First Lady Laura Bush
David Frum wrote for President George W. Bush
Adam Garfinkle wrote for President George W. Bush
David Gergen wrote for President Richard Nixon
Michael Gerson wrote for President George W. Bush
George Gilder wrote for President Richard Nixon
Richard N. Goodwin wrote for presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson
Josh Gottheimer wrote for President Bill Clinton
Historians believe Alexander Hamilton may have written speeches for President George Washington^[7]
Bob Hardesty wrote for President Lyndon B. Johnson
Jeffrey Hart wrote for President Richard Nixon
Robert T. Hartmann wrote for President Gerald Ford
Ken Hechler wrote for President Harry Truman
Hendrik Hertzberg wrote for President Jimmy Carter
Emmet John Hughes wrote for President Dwight D. Eisenhower
David Humphreys wrote for President George Washington
Sarah Hurwitz wrote for President Barack Obama
Michael Johns wrote for President George H. W. Bush
Hugh S. Johnson wrote for President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Mark Katz wrote for President Bill Clinton
Ken Khachigian wrote for Presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan
Arthur Larson wrote for President Dwight Eisenhower
Matt Latimer wrote for President George W. Bush
Henry Lee IV wrote for President Andrew Jackson
David Litt wrote for President Barack Obama
Jon Lovett wrote for President Barack Obama
Chris Matthews wrote for President Jimmy Carter
William McGurn wrote for President George W. Bush
John McLaughlin wrote for President Richard Nixon
Harry J. Middleton wrote for President Lyndon B. Johnson
Stephen Miller wrote for President Donald Trump
Raymond Moley wrote for President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Malcolm Moos wrote for President Dwight Eisenhower
Peggy Noonan wrote for presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush
Jay Nordlinger wrote for President George W. Bush
Robert Orben wrote for President Gerald Ford
Mark Palmer wrote for President Ronald Reagan
Landon Parvin wrote for Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush
John Podhoretz wrote for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush
Ray Price wrote for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford
Aneesh Raman wrote for President Barack Obama
Katherine Reback wrote for President Bill Clinton
Peter Robinson wrote for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush
Samuel Rosenman wrote for Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman
William Safire wrote for President Richard Nixon
Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. wrote for President John F. Kennedy
Matthew Scully wrote for President George W. Bush
Walter Shapiro wrote for President Jimmy Carter
Michael A. Sheehan wrote for President Bill Clinton
Robert E. Sherwood wrote for President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Jeff Shesol wrote for President Bill Clinton
David Shipley wrote for President Bill Clinton
Raymond Siller wrote for presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush
Curt Smith wrote for President George H. W. Bush
Tony Snow wrote for President George H. W. Bush
Ted Sorensen wrote for President John F. Kennedy
Ben Stein wrote for President Richard Nixon
Marc Thiessen wrote for President George W. Bush
Michael Waldman wrote for President Bill Clinton
Orson Welles wrote for President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Judson T. Welliver, considered the first official presidential speechwriter in the modern sense of the occupation, wrote for President Warren G. Harding^[8] and Calvin Coolidge
Mari Maseng Will wrote for President Ronald Reagan