Spring 2024 Internat & Intercult CR (CRS-7100-4) Assignments » Assignment 4: Global Messaging - State of the Union Address—Week 9? Assignment 4: Global Messaging—State of the Union Address—Week 9 Instructions I made a point to watch the recent State of the Union Address given by President Biden, in which his presentation was described as "fiery

Spring 2024 Internat & Intercult CR (CRS-7100-4)

Assignments » Assignment 4: Global Messaging - State of the Union Address—Week 9?

Assignment 4: Global Messaging—State of the Union Address—Week 9

Instructions

I made a point to watch the recent State of the Union Address given by President

Biden, in which his presentation was described as "fiery." Reading the transcript, | could not help but notice how many people he referenced or "spoke" to, regardless of whether or not they were physically present. A number of them were people he, or First Lady Jill Biden, had invited. | decided to make a list after reading the transcript.

1. Vice President Kamala Harris

2. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson

3. Adolph Hitler

4. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt

5. President Abraham Lincoln

6. President Putin

7. President Ronald Reagan

8. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev (Reagan era)

9. Prime Minister of Sweden

10. Latorya Beasley —> |

11. Kate Cox

12. Justices of the Supreme Court

13. Congress members in general

14. Congress members who interrupted, challenged or the heckled the

President.

15. Sean Fein

16. Dawn Simms

17. Senator Bob Casey

18. Keenan Jones->~ 2

19. Bettie Mae Fikes —— “T

20. Steve Nikoul

21. Beau and Hunter Biden

22. Jasmine - a young girl who lost her sister in the Uvalde school shooting

23. "My predecessor"

24. Evan and Paul (Evan Gershkovitz and Paul Whelan)

25. Dr. [Martin Luther] King

26. Bobby Kennedy, Attorney General, attorney, and other positions

27. Denis McDonough

28. U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham

29. Nancy Pelosi S

30. The American People xe 7

Each time | review the transcript, | find another person mentioned, and so | must

stop. | will leave this list as is!

To whom is a State of Union Address, being...addressed?

¢« Both houses of Congress - members of the Senate and of the House of

Representatives

e The Vice President and the Speaker of the House

e Any guests invited by the President (May invite up to 24 guests, who will be seated in a boxed area with the First Lady.)

¢ Any guests invited by members of Congress (Each member may bring 1 guest)

e Anyone who has ever served in Congress, such as Former Representative,

George Santos, until or unless they are found guilty of a crime.

e The American people

e The news media, social media

This address is made openly and recorded. Transcripts are prepared, etc. Virtually anyone who wants to watch and listen can likely find a means to do so.

Who else is listening? Minimally, | would expect President Putin, Former President

Trump, President Xi Jinping, and a great many other world leaders, and anyone in

the world with access.

As we think about this address, it is useful to consider a// these listeners. Because

President Biden was well-aware that they would be listening, and thus he crafted

his speech with them in mind.

So, why is a State of the Union Address our topic this week?

Because a State of the Union Address is an international and

intercultural communication about both conflict and hope.

What work to do for this assignment

1. Review the list of people above and determine which 5 you would like to

include in your writing this week.

1. A good decision rule is to select individuals whose names you do not

recognize. Or recognize but do not know much about. And certainly

you can hold "auditions." You may investigate a person and then

decide to choose someone else in their place.

2. Off limits are any individuals who are deceased, members of

President Biden's family, members of Congress, current world leaders

and any other well-known individuals. That cuts the list down to a

more manageable size. If you live outside of the United States, some

of the people that | would define as well-known, might be less-well-

known to you and may be appropriate for this assignment. Just email

and ask me if you are not certain about any of your choices.

2. For each of your 5 persons, address these assignment prompts in

essay/paragraph format, with 1-2 paragraphs on each person. This could

amount to anywhere between 3-5 pages, or even a little longer. As always,

12-point Calibri font, double-spaced, 1-inch margins all around.

3. You are in the role of communicating to someone who is a bright individual, but who did not watch the State of the Union address.

1. Introduce the person - At minimum. include their name, exact or approximate age, any available biographical details that would help in knowing them better, and what they have accomplished or experienced that you think influenced the President to invite or refer to them in his speech. Include any relevant dates, names, or places. Find as much information as is readily available online. You want to build a full and accurate account that includes such details, and answers the basic question, "Who is this person?"

2. How did President Biden address them or tell their stories, what did he say?

3. Why do you think he included this person in his address? Was it a positive, affirming story about some great news? Was it a rebuke or challenge to society, another individual, a company, a world leader, etc. that this situation will/should not be allowed to happen again? Or something else? |

4. One critique of this State of the Union address was that it sounded much more like a campaign speech than what a State of the Union (SOTU) is supposed to be about. https://www.senate.gov/about/traditions-symbols/state-of- the-union.htm

1. Do you think there was a group/category of American voters that he hoped to reach and influence by the use of this particular story?

2. Explain your answer briefly and discuss the context, underlying factors, or anything else that you think is relevant.

5. Again, do this exercise for each of your 5 people. | hope you learn a lot and enjoy this exercise!