The communicator's-eye view

In my constant fishing expedition for contemporary and historical speeches to fill Vital Speeches' You Tube site, I ran across this raw video of the scene before President Nixon's televised resignation address on Aug. 8, 1974. Veteran communicators will find as familiar as strange, the disconnectedness between profound public moment and backstage banality.

Comments

[Matt]

Great find. Remarkable and poignant. He seems strangely relieved.

[Lisa Earle Mcleod]

Wow, watching the prep before he goes on, you can see how relieved he is, like the veil has been lifted.

then when you watch the actual resignation, you see it in a completely different light, you see the peace in his eyes behind the seriousness, like thank heavens it's all over.

But you wouldn't notice it, unless you had seen the earlier part.

Great clip.

Lisa Earle McLeod
www.thetriangleoftruth.com

[Robin Brown Davis]

Nixon seemed serene and at peace with his decision. That's about the only thing that will lift the weight of the world off your shoulders. Accept the past and move on.

[Simon]

Fantastic find (Thanks to Seth for the signpost here).

I wonder what Blair's was like - not as jolly I bet.

[Carolina Greene]

Fabulous find. I don't see a disconnect at all between the prep and the actual, as perhaps suggested. The prep was Nixon at peace w/his decision, trying to relax before giving the speech of his lifetime, thus the bantering. It was also his attempt, I think, to put the camera people, reporters, etc. at ease since they were witness to such an ominous event in history. It shows a more personal side to Nixon than I ever saw during his presidency.

[Joe Geoffrey]

I think Carolina identified the essence of the moment; a leader knows his power to influence the room. President Nixon extended the grace necessary, to those who were there to do their job, to get that job done. That's why he rose to leadership; help others do the job they love or, help them fall in love with the job they have.

[Amanda O'Donovan]

Looks like Seth Godin has triggered a flurry of activity by pointing us all at this post.

As someone who experienced the Nixon years through the filter of European media, and more recently by watching Frost/Nixon, this is a fascinating revelation. It's amazing how powerful and opinion-changing a single clip can be.

Many thanks for the insight.

Amanda O'Donovan
www.amandaodonovan.com

[Dr Schoor]

Amazing footage. I find him looking awkward, pathetic almost. Perhaps he is trying to look upbeat and relieved for his supporters, but I see his devastation. Absolutely amazing. Thanks for it.

[Barak Rosenbloom]

Imagine if he had been that relaxed and at peace as President. What a different world we would be in today.

[Jon Sooy]

Brilliant video. Since the beginning of television, we judge so many people by soundbites and whatever bits we are fed by the media, it is nice to see the human side of a man that is so frequently demonized (right or wrong). No one is perfect, but we all are human.

[Charles Gupton]

Which of us has not had the same sense of relief after having made a difficult decision and moved ahead with it. The tension of not knowing and having to put together the cost-vs-benefits of the decision is much harder than taking the heat of the decision itself.

It's much easier to vilify someone than to see their humanity in ourselves. This historical footage helps us do that.

Charles Gupton
www.charlesgupton.wordpress.com/

[ag]

profound... thanks for posting!

[David Murray]

Great conversation here, all. You saw many true things in this short clip, and many of your comments leave me to say, "That's what I'da said if I coulda laid tongue to it."

[Robert Zuniga]

yes, the relaxed nature of Pres. Nixon speaks volumes.

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