Keith Olbermann's Persuasive Commentary

Over the past few weeks, I've heard a number of comments about Keith Olbermann, who is an anchor and commentator on MSNBC with a far-left bent. Personally, I find many of his views repugnant. However, he is becoming more and more popular. On a semi-regular basis, he delivers what he calls "Special Comments," which amount to a 8-10 minute editorial, usually on a politically related subject. Seeing as many Americans find his commentary extremely persuasive, I want to examine why his commentaries are so persuasive.

In this piece, I will examine the commentary that he gave on October 18, 2006 on the Military Commissions Act and--in Olbermann's view--the loss of Habeas Corpus.

I would recommend you view the commentary here at YouTube.com as it is an excellent piece of persuasive work. Also, you can view a rough transcript here [note: this transcript is not entirely perfect].

Why Olbermann is Persuasive

• Speaks With Passion.
• Olbermann speaks with significant passion and uses excellent inflection in his voice and pauses at times to magnify his points.
  
• Uses Numerous Historical Examples.
• "We have been here when President John Adams insisted that the Alien and Sedition Acts were necessary to save American lives — only to watch him use those Acts to jail newspaper editors."
• "We have been here, when President Woodrow Wilson insisted that the Espionage Act was necessary to save American lives — only to watch him use that Act to prosecute 2,000 Americans, especially those he disparaged as "Hyphenated Americans," most of whom were guilty only of advocating peace in a time of war."
• "And we have been here when President Franklin D. Roosevelt insisted that Executive Order 9-0-6-6 was necessary to save American lives — only to watch him use that Order to imprison and pauperize 110-thousand Americans"
• Criticizes Democrats and Republicans
• Olbermann criticizes both Republican and Democratic presidents from the past.
  
• Repetition
• "the most vital, the most urgent, the most inescapable of reasons" is repeated multiple times at crucial times in the piece.
  
• Fear
• Olbermann is trying to engender fear in his listeners to scare them. "Sadly — of course — the distance of history will recognize that the threat this generation of Americans needed to take seriously… was you."
• "We have handed a blank check drawn against our freedom to a man who may now, if he so decides, declare not merely any non-American citizens 'Unlawful Enemy Combatants' and ship them somewhere — anywhere — but may now, if he so decides, declare you an 'Unlawful Enemy Combatant' and ship you somewhere - anywhere."
• Uses Powerful Metaphors
• "blank check"
• "the wolf is at the door"