{"id":223,"date":"2022-04-25T13:49:51","date_gmt":"2022-04-25T13:49:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/chapter\/what-is-an-informative-speech\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T18:10:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T18:10:25","slug":"what-is-an-informative-speech","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/chapter\/what-is-an-informative-speech\/","title":{"raw":"12.1 What is an Informative Speech?","rendered":"12.1 What is an Informative Speech?"},"content":{"raw":"<div id=\"slug-12-1-what-is-an-informative-speech\" class=\"chapter standard\">\r\n<h2 class=\"chapter-title\" style=\"text-align: center;\">12.1 What Is an Informative Speech?<\/h2>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Understanding Informative Speeches<\/h3>\r\nAn <strong>[pb_glossary id=\"1943\"]informative speech[\/pb_glossary]<\/strong> is a presentation based on factual information. Its primary purpose is to convey knowledge rather than persuade, argue, or advocate for a particular course of action.\r\n\r\nPeople engage in informal versions of informative speaking every day. Examples include giving driving directions, explaining a restaurant\u2019s daily specials, or summarizing a movie plot for friends. In a public-speaking setting, however, informative speeches require careful preparation, organization, and attention to accuracy.\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">What Makes a Speech Informative?<\/h3>\r\nAn informative speech presents information that can be verified through reliable evidence. Consider these examples:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Two plus two equals four.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>George Washington was the first president of the United States under the U.S. Constitution.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nBoth statements can be supported by established evidence. However, clarity and precision remain important. For example, John Hanson is sometimes described as the first president of the United States because he served as president of Congress under the Articles of Confederation. That position was different from the presidency established later under the U.S. Constitution.\r\n\r\nThis example demonstrates why informative speakers must define terms carefully, provide context, and avoid presenting incomplete or potentially misleading information.\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Informative and Persuasive Speeches<\/h3>\r\nThe primary difference between informative and persuasive speeches is the speaker\u2019s purpose. An informative speech seeks to increase the audience\u2019s knowledge or understanding. A persuasive speech seeks to influence the audience\u2019s beliefs, attitudes, values, or actions.\r\n\r\nInformative speeches should not use the speaker\u2019s personal opinions as their foundation. For example, the statement \u201cGeorge Washington was one of the greatest presidents in U.S. history\u201d is an opinion because people may disagree about what makes a president great.\r\n\r\nAn informative speaker may discuss an expert\u2019s opinion when it is clearly attributed. For example:\r\n<blockquote>Historian Joseph Ellis argues that George Washington was among the most influential presidents in U.S. history.<\/blockquote>\r\nIn this example, the speaker is reporting another person\u2019s interpretation rather than presenting the interpretation as an undisputed fact.\r\n\r\nUnlike persuasive speeches, informative speeches should avoid taking sides or presenting information in a way that intentionally directs the audience toward a particular position. Even when discussing a controversial issue, the speaker\u2019s role is to explain the subject accurately, fairly, and clearly.\r\n\r\nAudience relevance still matters. The WIIFM principle, meaning \u201cWhat\u2019s in it for me?\u201d, reminds speakers to connect information to the audience\u2019s interests, experiences, and needs. Relevance helps listeners understand why the information matters without turning the speech into an argument.\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Why Informative Speeches Matter<\/h3>\r\nIn an age of immediate access to online information, people may question why informative speeches are still necessary. A skilled speaker can select, evaluate, organize, explain, and adapt information for a particular audience. This process can make complicated information easier to understand and remember.\r\n\r\nEffective informative speaking is not simply the presentation of a large collection of facts. The speaker must identify the most important information, explain relationships among ideas, define unfamiliar terms, and present the material in a clear and meaningful structure.\r\n\r\nAlthough informative speeches do not directly ask the audience to adopt a belief or take action, information can still have a practical influence. For example, a classmate who explains how to perform the Heimlich maneuver may not be urging the audience to act immediately. However, listeners may later use that information during a choking emergency.\r\n\r\nThis example illustrates the lasting value of accurate, understandable, and well-delivered information.\r\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--key\">\r\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\r\n<h3>Licenses and Attribution<\/h3>\r\n<h4>CC Licensed Content, Original<\/h4>\r\n<em>Speech Communication<\/em> was created by Lana Iapicco and Marie Torres. Independently created original and AI-assisted content developed specifically for this book is licensed under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License<\/a>, except where otherwise noted.\r\n\r\nThis educational material includes content generated or revised with the assistance of large language models. Lana Iapicco and Marie Torres reviewed, edited, and take responsibility for the final published content.\r\n<h4>CC Licensed Content, Previously Shared<\/h4>\r\n<h5>What Is an Informative Speech?<\/h5>\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/louis.pressbooks.pub\/publicspeaking\/chapter\/what-is-an-informative-speech\/\">\u201cWhat Is an Informative Speech?\u201d<\/a> by Douglas Marshall, James Yeargain, June Pulliam, Sara Kim, and Victoria VanNest, published in <em><a href=\"https:\/\/louis.pressbooks.pub\/publicspeaking\/\">It\u2019s About Them: Public Speaking in the 21st Century<\/a><\/em> by LOUIS: The Louisiana Library Network, was adapted for this section.\r\n\r\nThe source material is licensed under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License<\/a>. The material was revised, reorganized, expanded, updated, and supplemented with original and AI-assisted content for this edition.\r\n\r\nAdapted portions derived from this source, including revisions to those portions, are licensed under the <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License<\/a>. Independently created portions developed specifically for <em>Speech Communication<\/em> are licensed under the book\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License<\/a>, except where otherwise noted.\r\n<h4>Other Content Included<\/h4>\r\n<h5>The Art of Public Speaking<\/h5>\r\nLucas, S. E. (2023). <em>The art of public speaking<\/em> (14th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.\r\n\r\nThis source informed the discussion of informative speaking, factual information, audience relevance, and the distinctions between informative and persuasive purposes. The publication remains subject to the rights of its author and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.\r\n<h5>Human Communication: Motivation, Knowledge, and Skills<\/h5>\r\nMorreale, S. P., Spitzberg, B. H., &amp; Barge, J. K. (2017). <em>Human communication: Motivation, knowledge, and skills<\/em> (3rd ed.). Cengage Learning.\r\n\r\nThis source informed the broader discussion of communication competence, knowledge, audience understanding, and effective message development. The publication remains subject to the rights of its authors and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.\r\n<h5>A Pocket Guide to Public Speaking<\/h5>\r\nO\u2019Hair, D., Stewart, R., &amp; Rubenstein, H. (2021). <em>A pocket guide to public speaking<\/em> (6th ed.). Bedford\/St. Martin\u2019s.\r\n\r\nThis source informed the discussion of speech purposes, audience-centered communication, and the development of informative presentations. The publication remains subject to the rights of its authors and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.\r\n<h5>The Competent Communicator<\/h5>\r\nVerderber, R. F., Sellnow, D. D., &amp; Verderber, K. S. (2017). <em>The competent communicator<\/em> (14th ed.). Oxford University Press.\r\n\r\nThis source informed the discussion of informative communication, audience adaptation, message clarity, and responsible public speaking. The publication remains subject to the rights of its authors and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.\r\n<h4>Third-Party References and Links<\/h4>\r\nHistorical figures, books, scholarly works, examples, organizations, and other third-party materials referenced in this section remain the property of their respective authors, publishers, organizations, and rights holders. References to George Washington, John Hanson, Joseph Ellis, the Articles of Confederation, and the U.S. Constitution are included for instructional purposes.\r\n\r\nThe inclusion of these names, examples, citations, and links does not imply endorsement and does not place the underlying third-party materials under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.\r\n\r\nUnless a separate license or public-domain status is specifically identified, third-party content may not be copied, redistributed, or adapted independently of the permissions provided by its copyright holder or applicable law.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"<div id=\"slug-12-1-what-is-an-informative-speech\" class=\"chapter standard\">\n<h2 class=\"chapter-title\" style=\"text-align: center;\">12.1 What Is an Informative Speech?<\/h2>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Understanding Informative Speeches<\/h3>\n<p>An <strong><button class=\"glossary-term\" aria-describedby=\"223-1943\">informative speech<\/button><\/strong> is a presentation based on factual information. Its primary purpose is to convey knowledge rather than persuade, argue, or advocate for a particular course of action.<\/p>\n<p>People engage in informal versions of informative speaking every day. Examples include giving driving directions, explaining a restaurant\u2019s daily specials, or summarizing a movie plot for friends. In a public-speaking setting, however, informative speeches require careful preparation, organization, and attention to accuracy.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">What Makes a Speech Informative?<\/h3>\n<p>An informative speech presents information that can be verified through reliable evidence. Consider these examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Two plus two equals four.<\/li>\n<li>George Washington was the first president of the United States under the U.S. Constitution.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Both statements can be supported by established evidence. However, clarity and precision remain important. For example, John Hanson is sometimes described as the first president of the United States because he served as president of Congress under the Articles of Confederation. That position was different from the presidency established later under the U.S. Constitution.<\/p>\n<p>This example demonstrates why informative speakers must define terms carefully, provide context, and avoid presenting incomplete or potentially misleading information.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Informative and Persuasive Speeches<\/h3>\n<p>The primary difference between informative and persuasive speeches is the speaker\u2019s purpose. An informative speech seeks to increase the audience\u2019s knowledge or understanding. A persuasive speech seeks to influence the audience\u2019s beliefs, attitudes, values, or actions.<\/p>\n<p>Informative speeches should not use the speaker\u2019s personal opinions as their foundation. For example, the statement \u201cGeorge Washington was one of the greatest presidents in U.S. history\u201d is an opinion because people may disagree about what makes a president great.<\/p>\n<p>An informative speaker may discuss an expert\u2019s opinion when it is clearly attributed. For example:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Historian Joseph Ellis argues that George Washington was among the most influential presidents in U.S. history.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>In this example, the speaker is reporting another person\u2019s interpretation rather than presenting the interpretation as an undisputed fact.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike persuasive speeches, informative speeches should avoid taking sides or presenting information in a way that intentionally directs the audience toward a particular position. Even when discussing a controversial issue, the speaker\u2019s role is to explain the subject accurately, fairly, and clearly.<\/p>\n<p>Audience relevance still matters. The WIIFM principle, meaning \u201cWhat\u2019s in it for me?\u201d, reminds speakers to connect information to the audience\u2019s interests, experiences, and needs. Relevance helps listeners understand why the information matters without turning the speech into an argument.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Why Informative Speeches Matter<\/h3>\n<p>In an age of immediate access to online information, people may question why informative speeches are still necessary. A skilled speaker can select, evaluate, organize, explain, and adapt information for a particular audience. This process can make complicated information easier to understand and remember.<\/p>\n<p>Effective informative speaking is not simply the presentation of a large collection of facts. The speaker must identify the most important information, explain relationships among ideas, define unfamiliar terms, and present the material in a clear and meaningful structure.<\/p>\n<p>Although informative speeches do not directly ask the audience to adopt a belief or take action, information can still have a practical influence. For example, a classmate who explains how to perform the Heimlich maneuver may not be urging the audience to act immediately. However, listeners may later use that information during a choking emergency.<\/p>\n<p>This example illustrates the lasting value of accurate, understandable, and well-delivered information.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--key\">\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\n<h3>Licenses and Attribution<\/h3>\n<h4>CC Licensed Content, Original<\/h4>\n<p><em>Speech Communication<\/em> was created by Lana Iapicco and Marie Torres. Independently created original and AI-assisted content developed specifically for this book is licensed under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License<\/a>, except where otherwise noted.<\/p>\n<p>This educational material includes content generated or revised with the assistance of large language models. Lana Iapicco and Marie Torres reviewed, edited, and take responsibility for the final published content.<\/p>\n<h4>CC Licensed Content, Previously Shared<\/h4>\n<h5>What Is an Informative Speech?<\/h5>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/louis.pressbooks.pub\/publicspeaking\/chapter\/what-is-an-informative-speech\/\">\u201cWhat Is an Informative Speech?\u201d<\/a> by Douglas Marshall, James Yeargain, June Pulliam, Sara Kim, and Victoria VanNest, published in <em><a href=\"https:\/\/louis.pressbooks.pub\/publicspeaking\/\">It\u2019s About Them: Public Speaking in the 21st Century<\/a><\/em> by LOUIS: The Louisiana Library Network, was adapted for this section.<\/p>\n<p>The source material is licensed under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License<\/a>. The material was revised, reorganized, expanded, updated, and supplemented with original and AI-assisted content for this edition.<\/p>\n<p>Adapted portions derived from this source, including revisions to those portions, are licensed under the <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License<\/a>. Independently created portions developed specifically for <em>Speech Communication<\/em> are licensed under the book\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License<\/a>, except where otherwise noted.<\/p>\n<h4>Other Content Included<\/h4>\n<h5>The Art of Public Speaking<\/h5>\n<p>Lucas, S. E. (2023). <em>The art of public speaking<\/em> (14th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.<\/p>\n<p>This source informed the discussion of informative speaking, factual information, audience relevance, and the distinctions between informative and persuasive purposes. The publication remains subject to the rights of its author and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h5>Human Communication: Motivation, Knowledge, and Skills<\/h5>\n<p>Morreale, S. P., Spitzberg, B. H., &amp; Barge, J. K. (2017). <em>Human communication: Motivation, knowledge, and skills<\/em> (3rd ed.). Cengage Learning.<\/p>\n<p>This source informed the broader discussion of communication competence, knowledge, audience understanding, and effective message development. The publication remains subject to the rights of its authors and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h5>A Pocket Guide to Public Speaking<\/h5>\n<p>O\u2019Hair, D., Stewart, R., &amp; Rubenstein, H. (2021). <em>A pocket guide to public speaking<\/em> (6th ed.). Bedford\/St. Martin\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>This source informed the discussion of speech purposes, audience-centered communication, and the development of informative presentations. The publication remains subject to the rights of its authors and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h5>The Competent Communicator<\/h5>\n<p>Verderber, R. F., Sellnow, D. D., &amp; Verderber, K. S. (2017). <em>The competent communicator<\/em> (14th ed.). Oxford University Press.<\/p>\n<p>This source informed the discussion of informative communication, audience adaptation, message clarity, and responsible public speaking. The publication remains subject to the rights of its authors and publisher and is not included under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h4>Third-Party References and Links<\/h4>\n<p>Historical figures, books, scholarly works, examples, organizations, and other third-party materials referenced in this section remain the property of their respective authors, publishers, organizations, and rights holders. References to George Washington, John Hanson, Joseph Ellis, the Articles of Confederation, and the U.S. Constitution are included for instructional purposes.<\/p>\n<p>The inclusion of these names, examples, citations, and links does not imply endorsement and does not place the underlying third-party materials under the Creative Commons licenses applied to <em>Speech Communication<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Unless a separate license or public-domain status is specifically identified, third-party content may not be copied, redistributed, or adapted independently of the permissions provided by its copyright holder or applicable law.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"glossary\"><div class=\"glossary__tooltip\" id=\"223-1943\" hidden><p>A presentation based on facts whose primary purpose is to increase the audience\u2019s knowledge rather than persuade them to accept a position or take action.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"menu_order":1,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":["liapicco","mtorres54"],"pb_section_license":"cc-by-nc-sa"},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[61,62],"license":[57],"class_list":["post-223","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","contributor-liapicco","contributor-mtorres54","license-cc-by-nc-sa"],"part":221,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/223\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1949,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/223\/revisions\/1949"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/221"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/223\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=223"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=223"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.hcfl.edu\/speechcomm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}