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Finding the right mix of supporting material (e.g., examples, facts, statistics, opinions, stories, and testimony) for your speech requires selecting among primary and secondary sources. Primary sources provide firsthand accounts or direct evidence of events, objects, or people (as found, for example, in diaries and photographs).1 Secondary sources provide analysis or commentary about things not directly observed or created. These include the vast world of “secondhand” information found in books, articles, and a myriad of sources other than the original.
Mix It Up with Both Primary and Secondary Sources
Many speeches can benefit from a mix of both primary and secondary sources. The firsthand nature of a primary source can build trust and engage audience members emotionally. Secondary sources can help listeners put the topic in perspective. A speech on an oil spill, for example, can command more attention if it includes testimony by oil riggers and other eyewitnesses (primary sources) along with analyses of the spill from magazines and newspapers (secondary sources).