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Washington, DC, is a complicated town full of competing interests vying to control the federal government. Michael Franc, director of the Hoover Institution’s research and initiatives program in the nation’s capital and a former congressional aide, takes us through the past year’s drama, saying why the town hasn’t adjusted to the Trump presidency and offering a holiday guide as to who’s been naughty and nice in 2017.
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You need to do one of two things. Either turn up the gain on Michael Whalen’s mike, or have him take some elocution lessons. 90% of the time he is “swallowing his words”. He speaks in the back of his throat and doesn’t use head or chest tones, so he isn’t projecting. This is bad because his guests do project, so it isn’t possible to adjust the volume. Either the guest is too loud or Whelan is muttering.
Whelan doesn’t do creaky voice, but he’s close. He pitches his voice too low, so he can’t sing the words. Singing speech is necessary to using the head and chest resonance necessary for projection.
I know he can do it, because 5% of the time he does get it right, for instance the announcement after the interview. It’s as though that is when he remembers the audience, but during the interview he uses his parlor voice instead of his studio voice.