With all of the Oscar buzz about "The King's Speech," I thought I take advantage of this teaching moment to make a few important points about talent coaching for on-air news anchors and reporters, and for anyone who needs to appear in front of a camera for online video. First, there are a lot of bad talent coaches out there. At the beginning of the movie, Prince Albert is asked to put glass marbles in his mouth by a speech therapist who fails to get results with a "one-size-fits-all" coaching exercise. Geoffrey Rush's character, Lionel Logue, takes the time to address the specific, individual issues that are holding back his royal client's communication skills.
Another disaster occurs when the prince's father, King George, tries to improve the stammering son's performance by standing over him and commanding, "Relax!" It doesn't help your performance when the person who signs your paycheck demands that you "be conversational" without any further guidance.
Of course, stammering is a serious impediment that may require treatment by an expert in speech therapy. Most people who advance to the level of professional news anchoring and reporting don't stammer. But they often need the help of a talent coach to eliminate other types of static that is interfering with their performance. Some of our most celebrated broadcasters, such as NBC's Tom Brokaw and ABC's Barbara Walters, have noticeable speech defects. Yet, they are effective communicators. On the other hand, it's possible to have perfect diction and fail to connect with the audience.
What works? Logue insists on "trust and total equality, here in the safety of my consultation room." Talent coaching takes place in a safety zone where clients can experiment with changes in their performance that they could never risk on a live program. No, I don't ask my clients to swear at the top of their lungs, but we do breathing exercises, arm flapping and a few other things to break down the phony anchor facade and encourage an authentic performance. What happens in coaching stays in coaching. Or, as Logue puts it, "with complete privacy."
In addition to teaching skills, it's also important for the talent coach to have significant experience in front of the camera. As a Shakespearean actor, Logue knew how to project the image of a king. He understood how to size up a grand stage and prepare his client to take commeand. But, at the moment when the new king faced the challenge of preparing his country for World War II, Logue's advice was simple: "Say it to me as a friend."
Just as the stammering monarch in the movie had to deal with the new technology of radio, those of us who make our living in journalism and public relations must learn to use multimedia to reach our intended audience. Whether you are a veteran or a beginner, it helps to have a talent coach to bring out your true multimedia voice.
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A version of this post has also appeared on a highly recommended web site for news professionals: http://the247newsroom.com/.
