Journal of Business and Technical Communication Apr 2011 Open Access

Ghosting Authenticity: Characterization in Corporate Speechwriting

Kristine S. Bruss

Abstract

One of the most distinctive stylistic virtues of speechwriting is characterization, the art of capturing a client’s voice in a believable and engaging manner. This article examines characterization in the context of corporate communication, interweaving an interview with veteran executive speechwriter Alan Perlman with accounts from the ancient rhetorical tradition. As the analysis shows, Perlman’s approach to characterization confirms long-standing rhetorical wisdom yet incorporates insights that reflect the contemporary corporate context in which he has worked. The analysis also calls attention to enduring tensions in characterization—tensions between imitation and representation, effectiveness and ethics, and dramatic character and trustworthy ethos.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
2011-04-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651910389147
Open Access
OA PDF Green
Topics
multilingual writers voice and style argument

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (3)

  1. Deptula et al. (2025)
    Rhetorics of Authenticity: Ethics, Ethos, and Artificial Intelligence
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  2. Piller (2025)
    Inhuman Rhetoric: Generative AI and Crisis Communication
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. Findlay (2019)
    When Writers Aren’t Authors: A Qualitative Study of Unattributed Writers
    College English

Cites in this index (1)

  1. HENRY et al. (1995)
    Workplace Ghostwriting
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Also cites 11 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.1177/002194369102800403
     ↗
  2. 10.1080/00335636109382486
     ↗
  3. 10.1080/01463379609370029
     ↗
  4. 10.1080/10417948909372780
     ↗
  5. 10.1080/01463378809369712
     ↗
  6. 10.1017/S0009840X00203363
     ↗
  7. 10.1080/01463377809369282
     ↗
  8. 10.1080/10510978609368223
     ↗
  9. Russell, D. ( 1990). Ethos and oratory in rhetoric. In C. Pelling (Ed.), Characterization and individuality i…
     ↗
  10. 10.1080/03637754709374925
     ↗
  11. 10.1080/10417947609372332
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 5 View in citation network →

Related Articles

  1. Journal of Business and Technical Communication Jan 2025
    Rhetorics of Authenticity: Ethics, Ethos, and Artificial Intelligence ↗
    Adrianna Deptula; Paul Thompson Hunter; Richard Johnson-Sheehan
    multimodality artificial intelligence professional writing multilingual writers voice and style argument
  2. Poroi Jan 2022
    The Gendered Ethos of Pseudoscience: Feminized Discourse on Food Safety in the Blogosphere ↗
    Flemming Schneider Rhode; Tisha Dejmanee
    discourse analysis multimodality social media multilingual writers voice and style argument
  3. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 2013
    Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century Falconry Manuals: Technical Writing with a Classical Rhetorical Influence ↗
    John T. Battalio
    rhetorical theory technical communication race and writing multilingual writers voice and style argument
  4. Philosophy & Rhetoric Mar 2012
    On Mimetic Style in Plato's<i>Republic</i> ↗
    Russell Winslow
    multilingual writers voice and style argument
  5. Written Communication Apr 2006
    The Humanist Scholar as Public Expert ↗
    Christopher Eisenhart
    writing across the curriculum qualitative research multilingual writers voice and style argument affect and writing