Which is more powerful? The written word or the spoken word??

[kentuck]

I'm thinking in political context. Do people like Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly have more influence than say a Frank Rich or Maureen Dowd? Is it because of the number of people they reach or the substance of what they say or write?

Personally, I believe, with all things equal, that the written word is more powerful than the spoken word. Simply because, it is much easier to deceive oneself with words that are spoken than with words that are written, in my opinion. Spoken words are usually before an audience. Usually, the only audience for written words is one's self. There is no incentive to impress or to distort your words when you are writing, as some may be prone to do when they are speaking to an audience. Just a thought.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. I think it might be individualized

Personally, I am an auditory person, and any sort of sound has a greater impact on me than visual cues (also I have poor vision). But your point about an audience - the spoken word can be manipulated to sway an audience one way or another-and it often isn't just the words, but the tone of the words as well. However, until the advent of recording, the spoken word did not have the impact over time of the written word. Now I think it has a greater impact, but still less, over time, than the written word, if only because the written word can be pondered over.

[Missy M]

2. I agree, the written word is more powerful.....

and it can be read over and over. Also, a person can't deny what they wrote. Many times when they speak, they later deny it was ever said.

[KKKarl is an idiot]

3. ..

Certain works have incited people to do things they may not do under normal circumstances. Mein Kampf is an example of that, so the written word can also be distorted. Lincoln was a great orator. People were greatly influenced by his speeches for the good of us all. So we know that both the written & spoken words have a great amount of influence behind them.

On the whole people like Rush & Hannity will appeal to the same people year after year. The ones who think they are always right. They will do nothing because when it comes down to it these people are generally a bunch of chicken hawks. The bottom line I think is that it really comes down to who is giving the speech or writing the book.

[central scrutinizer]

4. We remember the sung word longer

It might be the most powerful. This is why many cultures use songs to pass on lore and wisdom through the ages.

[kentuck]

5. I think the spoken word, such as songs, can evoke stronger emotions...

The spoken word is how we communicate. However, for honesty and clarity, I think the written word may be the stronger of the two.

[underpants]

6. BTW- I just started reading "The Greatest Story Ever Sold"

Amazing how we forget about the context that the whole thing went through.

I have looked back at some YouTube videos of Condi in front of the 9/11 Commission and Powell at the UN and it is even more amazing that all those poor people fell for it.

[reichstag911]

7. Short term? Spoken....

Long term? Written.

In the short run, fiery rhetoric can easily arouse the masses, much more so than the spoken word, especially in our postliterate age. Hitler at Nuremberg. The written word, on the other hand, gets around more slowly and it is an individual experience, unlike speechifyin'. Thus its effect, while potentially greater (assuming the content warrants its power and immortality), takes longer to achieve its goals.

[slackmaster]

8. I can prove beyond any doubt the spoken word is far more powerful

Unfortunately, constraints of the present medium prevent me from doing so.

[applegrove]

9. Whoever moves the truth along..so real problems can be solved..

is more powerful. Those that make **** up for a political end..don't do anything to make the body politic grow and face the problems of the future. Bad information makes for weaker people and lesser adults. The sharing of good information is how we have progressed from murderous humans, warlike humans, and humans who practiced human sacrifice to participants in democracies.