I Have A Dream. The Influence Plays of Mar3n Luther King: Mapping the Strategies Behind His Dream

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1 Influence Strategy Map & Signature The Influence Plays of Mar3n Luther King: Mapping the Strategies Behind His Dream A 50 th Anniversary Analysis of MLK s I Have a Dream Speech Washington, D.C., 1963 Presented by Playmaker Systems, LLC Bethesda, MD USA info@playmakersystems.com Copyright Playmaker Systems, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Rev

On the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Mar3n Luther King Jr.'s historic I Have a Dream speech, the late reverend s words are by now well known. But what were the influence strategies behind his messages?

2 On the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Mar3n Luther King Jr.'s historic I Have a Dream speech, the late reverend s words are by now well known. But what were the influence strategies behind his messages? What were the plays that were being running? And can this inform our understanding of the man s power and process? Using The Standard Table of Influence (see last page or click here for an interac3ve version), Playmaker Systems has iden3fied underlying influence plays of King's August 28, 1963 address. From these findings cer3fied analysts have constructed a first- of- a- kind map and signature of this American icon s strategic and soaring rhetoric. King s Influence Strategy Map. Shown on pages three and four is a two- part 3meline of plays that correspond to 15 selected passages in famous King s speech. The resul3ng influence map of plobed stratagems and their associated quotes reveals a marked varia3on of plays beneath King s narra3ve. Those instances where plays are paired together are called harmonics, a conven3on for coding content where two or more plays are observed. MLK s Influence Strategy Signature. Shown on page five is a composite of these mapped plays as they appear on The Standard Table. The size of each icon indicates the frequency of use of a given coded play. According to this analysis, King's influence strategies of choice were the Screen (5 uses), Challenge (4 uses), Call Out (2 uses), Fiat (2 uses), Label (2 uses), Mirror (2 uses), Recast (2 uses), Bear Hug (1) and Disco (1 use). Plays shown in grey were not observed. What is notable about this signature is the concentra3on of mid- spectrum stratagems known for their abili3es to condi3on a target. With the excep3on of the Call Out, a provoking play that emerges twice, King employs a diversity of influence strategies 9 of 24 in the frame, freeze and press subclasses of The Table. With the excep3on of the Recast play, he appears only to be aided by strategies with mid- to high- transparency ra3ngs (i.e., no Red Herring plays). Mar3n Luther King is rightly honored as an American hero and a champion for racial equality. And as judged by the Playmaker system, his greatest work reflects both an ac3ve use of plays but largely those that are neither subtle, harsh nor hard to interpret. In fact, the good reverend was a man of rhetorical modera3on and candor...and an expert prac33oner in the discipline of influence strategy. 2

3 Influence Strategy Map SCREEN Five score years ago, a great American [Abraham Lincoln], in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipa?on Proclama?on. MIRROR 100 years later, the negro finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we ve come here today to drama?ze a shameful condi?on. CALL OUT America has given the negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds. Notable Influence Plays of Dr. Mar3n Luther King Jr. Washington, D.C., August 28, 1963 RECAST But we refuse to believe that the bank of jus?ce is bankrupt. CHALLENGE + DISCO But there is something I must say to my people we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. FIAT We ve come to our na?on s capital to cash a check. FIAT There will neither be rest nor tranquility in America un?l the negro is granted his ci?zenship rights. SCREEN All men would be guaranteed to the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Cont. For details, click a play above or visit The Standard Table of Influence 3

4 Influence Strategy Map CHALLENGE + CALL OUT We can never be sa?sfied as long as there are unspeakable horrors signs sta?ng for whites only [blacks] who cannot vote. CHALLENGE + BEAR HUG And when this happens all God s children, black men and white men, Jews and gen?les, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing. LABEL + SCREEN Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last! Cont. CHALLENGE This na?on will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self- evident that all men are created equal. LABEL + SCREEN I s?ll have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. RECAST + SCREEN We will all be able to sing with new meaning: My country,?s of thee, sweet land of liberty. MIRROR [Alabama s] governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposi?on and nullifica?on. For details, click a play above or visit The Standard Table of Influence 4

5 Influence Strategy Signature Notable Influence Plays of Dr. Mar3n Luther King Jr. Washington, D.C., August 28, 1963 For details, click a play above or visit The Standard Table of Influence 5

LG 21 Practice: Compare Malcolm X and Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

LG 21 Practice: Compare Malcolm X and Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Directions: You will use the information you find to create a Venn Diagram, chart, or Double Bubble map compare these two civil