Another interesting take on President Obama’s announcement late Sunday night is highlighting key words used during his carefully crafted remarks. Wordle is a free website that creates “beautiful word clouds” out of any body of text, with words appearing larger if used more frequently. Below is the entire transcript of Obama’s momentous speech. Click the graphic itself for a larger size.
A few observations:
- Obviously, the main words that stick out are “bin Laden” and “al Qaeda.” The Commander-in-Chief took a militaristic tone, using “war,” “operation” and “attacks.”
- Yet Obama also brings the message home – literally. “United States,” “people,” “American,” “country,” and “citizens” appear prominently.
- Unity is also trumpeted – “allies,” “friends” “world” and “God”
- It’s also noteworthy what isn’t emphasized. The religion of “Muslims” and “Islam” are downplayed, as are the finality of “death” and “defeat.” Even the buzz word “justice” doesn’t figure that largely.
Just another way to look past the headlines and dig down behind the text – thanks to multimedia.
