What should a speech in times of crisis meet?

It was an important speech, given by Mark Rutte on Monday, March 16, 2020, in which he addressed the nation through multiple media channels on the state of the corona crisis.

A moment that could leave a mark on his term as prime minister.

Many leaders preceded Rutte in addressing the people in times of crisis. A classic is the speech Reagan gave after the Challenger shuttle disaster in 1986.

A brilliant story that became the touchstone for similar speeches.

Now how do you build such a story?

From Huib's experience as a political speechwriter, there are a number of elements such a speech must contain:

1. Brief summary of the situation.

2. Clarity: in what context should we see this? How bad is it, what does it mean?

3. Empathy: showing compassion for those affected, their loved ones.

4. Perspective: how do we move forward after this? Hope for a better future.

5. A creative element, or beautiful one-liner. Consider the speech of Italian Prime Minister Conte, who said, "Let's keep our distance today, to embrace each other even more strongly tomorrow