Presentations vs. Speeches

A presentation is not a speech. To make a good presentation the presenter should fade comfortably into the background. His voice should be difficult to remember the source of, like a voiceover in a documentary. And like most documentaries, the presentation should be easy to digest, should demand nothing of the audience. Of course, making it easily digestible is always a little risky. The presenter must assume a person to whom he is speaking. He panders to an ideal audience of which at best only a semblance is present. What makes this slightly easier to carry off is that some of the audience will genuinely and agreeably imagine themselves to be this person to whom the presenter presents. But there are also varying levels of resistance to the notion. Some may be offended or bored, or on the other hand confused.