I was laying in bed thinking about all the pundits finding themes in Obama’s speech, trying to find a way of comparing this sober Obama with the young man from the 2004 DNC.

In a spasm of creative energy, coffee and insomnia I created this infographic comparing Obama’s 3 DNC speeches. It’s a pet project and while I spent a lot of effort to make it as accurate as possible it has not been vetted up to my usual journalistic standard, and I’m pretty sure the text is a see  sea of typos.

*Update 3:30AM
Who says I don’t finish things. LOL finally got all the info I want in here. Text version of my thoughts below the image.

Here’s what I learned:

“In 2004 Obama gave the shortest and most jam-packed speech. He began a signature use of first-person-plural emphasizing “participation.” He also frequently used first-person-singular as he introduced himself and talked about his “father.” He also laid out his “hope” for “America,” and threw his support behind “John Kerry.”

In 2008 Obama claimed the stage, speaking for nearly 45 minutes, and drawing over 12 minutes of applause. He talked about “America” being “one” “country” as he tempered his use of the third-person-plural ‘them’. He “promised” to “change” “America” and make “Washington” “work” if elected over “John McCain.”

In 2012 Obama’s speech was briefer and more humble than the previous speeches. He placed less focus on first-person-singular (himself) and indulged in less cheering and applause. He focused on the second-person crediting the audience for the successes of his first term. Obama’s speech was less focused but touched on “future” “challenges” like “war,” “jobs” and “energy.” Unlike the previous election cycles, he did not focus on his rival or any other individual.”