MAMMJ graduate Melanie Dunn is now speechwriter to the President of the European Commission.
Speechwriting may be quite an obscure and misunderstood craft, but one graduate of Bournemouth University’s MA in Multi-Media Journalism has risen to the very top in political penmanship. In March this year Melanie Dunn became speechwriter to the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso.
“Mr Barroso has three speechwriters, two write in English, one in French,” says Melanie. “His agenda can be unbelievable – from crisis summits to meeting Prime Ministers to chairing high-level conferences. As a result, we can have up to 20 speeches a month to prepare.”
Melanie studied at the Media School from 2001-2 and her tutors included Phil McGregor. “It was an excellent course and I’ve used many of the skills right since graduation,” she commented. “Although some of the technology we learned may have moved on, the discipline of writing in short and clear sentences has stood me in good stead throughout my career.”
After ten years of doing a variety of external and internal communications, Melanie has been learning that speechwriting is a different discipline: “In most communications work, you’re usually juggling lots of things, from interviews, articles to events. Speechwriting is more intense and intellectual – you have to concentrate on one thing for several days.”
However, one of the first tips usually given to speechwriters – to use humour – proves a challenge in an international and political setting. “Humour is not just language-specific, but nationality-specific. What may be relevant for a best man speech is not so for an economic speech in times of crisis. We use other techniques to keep the speeches lively – I strive to break it up, keep sentences short and language simple. Mr Barroso is interested in opera. I managed to get a reference to that when he was launching the Polish Presidency of the EU in the Opera House in Warsaw.”
All speechwriters crave access to the person they’re writing for, but this is often the biggest difficulty. “With Mr Barroso’s agenda, it is hard to get face time with him. Mr Barroso will do rewrites in his car on the way to engagements, even putting in quotations from songs by the Kinks!”
After graduating from Bournemouth, Melanie first looked for a job in the UK, but was then offered an internship in Brussels. She worked for a UK government agency and an international bank before she landed the role with the European Commission.
Ten EU speechwriters attended the third annual conference of the UK Speechwriters’ Guild in Bournemouth on Friday 16 September 2011. “It was fantastic to learn tips from some of the best-known people in the profession. And what a bonus that the conference takes place in my absolute favourite place in the UK!” says Melanie.
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