The best way to shut down a heckler
Sometime it's OK just to tell them to "shut up"
What’s the best way for politicians to handle hecklers who interrupt a speech?
Should they give hecklers a forum to express their views, or is it better to embarrass them by mocking their ideas in front of the crowd?
As these videos of Mitt Romney and President Obama show, both approaches can work. Although the two men differed in tone, both employed a similar tactic: They offered the floor to their hecklers before re-claiming the floor. That approach helps neutralize opponents who would otherwise continue shouting during their speeches.
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Last month, Wayne LaPierre, the executive vice president for the National Rifle Association, was interrupted by protesters during a speech to an arguably unfriendly crowd.
Brad Phillips, the author of The Media Training Bible, says that “because security was on hand to escort the protesters out, Mr. LaPierre did the right thing by stopping, waiting until the protesters had been removed, and then resuming his speech.”
Responding to hecklers is similar to responding to an ambush interview, Phillips says. In his book, he writes, “If you respond to a media ambush with defensiveness, anger, or shock, the news outlet will run the tape of your bad reaction repeatedly. You win an ambush by denying the media a great visual… By remaining calm, you prevent reporters from getting the compelling ‘money shot’ they desire.”
Of course, if all else fails, there’s always the Ronald Reagan approach of just telling the heckler to “shut up.”
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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political websites. He also runs Wonk Wire and the Political Dictionary. Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and COO of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. senator and governor. Goddard is also co-author of You Won — Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including The Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Christian Science Monitor. Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
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