It only serves to show what sort of person a man must be who can't even get testimonials. No, no; if a man brings references, it proves nothing; but if he can't, it proves a great deal.
Joseph PulitzerRead
The American people want something terse, forcible, picturesque, striking - something that will arrest their attention, enlist their sympathy, arouse their indignation, stimulate their imagination, convince their reason, awaken their conscience.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the need for impactful communication that captures and engages the audience effectively.
Joseph Pulitzer highlights the importance of delivering messages that are concise, forceful, and vividly expressed in order to connect deeply with the audience. He suggests that effective communication should not only grab attention but also evoke emotions and provoke thought, appealing to both the rational and emotional sides of the audience, thus ensuring the message resonates powerfully.
Themes
CommunicationImpactAttentionEngagementEmotion
In practice
Example use cases
Using this quote during a marketing seminar to discuss the impact of effective messaging.
More from Joseph Pulitzer
All quotes →What a newspaper needs in its news, in its headlines, and on its editorial page is terseness, humor, descriptive power, satire, originality, good literary style, clever condensation, and accuracy, accuracy, accuracy!
Joseph PulitzerRead
Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light.
Joseph PulitzerRead
If you will give the matter a moment's thought, you'll see that memory is the highest faculty of the human mind.
Joseph PulitzerRead
An able, disinterested, public-spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and courage to do it, can preserve that public virtue without which popular government is a sham and a mockery
Joseph PulitzerRead
Our Republic and its press will rise or fall together.
Joseph PulitzerRead
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