MEET THE CICERO SPEECHWRITING AWARDS JUDGES

David Murray is editor of Vital Speeches of the Day and Vital Speeches International. Formerly editor of Speechwriter's Newsletter and chairman of Ragan Communications' annual Speechwriter's Conference, Murray has covered speechwriting and executive communication for nearly two decades. Murray writes and speaks widely on communication and rhetoric.

Annelies Breedveld writes speeches for the minister and the highest military official of the Netherlands, the Commander in Chief of the Dutch Armed Forces. She won the 2012 Cicero Speechwriting Grand Award for a TedxAmsterdam talk, “Why I Chose A Gun,” delivered by General Peter Van Uhm. She also teaches Public Speaking at the Clingendael Institute of Foreign Relations in The Hague.

Jan Cook has more than 25 years experience writing speeches for high-profile CEOs and executives with leading corporations, nonprofits, and universities. She is founder and president of Washington Speechwriters Roundtable, a professional alliance of more than 450 speechwriters in Washington, D.C. and nationwide.

Kell Jarner Rasmussen is CEO of Rhetor, a Danish firm that specializes in persuasive communication. Rasmussen has worked for more than a decade as a speechwriter and rhetorical adviser in corporate and government offices, as well as political organizations. He's cofounder and former editor of Rhetorica Scandinavica, a scientific journal of rhetoric, and since 2001 he and his partners have held a yearly Danish speechwriting conference.

Tom Rosshirt has spent more than fifteen years working as a communications director, press secretary and speechwriter at the highest levels of business, government and philanthropy. Before he and his partners founded the writing and communications strategy firm West Wing Writers, Rosshirt served in the Clinton White House as a foreign policy speechwriter for the President. Before that, he served as foreign policy spokesman for Vice President Al Gore. Rosshirt currently writes a nationally syndicated column on politics.

Dana Rubin is an award-winning former journalist and speechwriter who has written speeches for leaders at the highest levels of business, government, philanthropy, and higher education. Five years ago she founded the New York Speechwriter's Roundtable, a forum for professional speechwriters to come together, share professional tips, and hear high-level speakers about speechwriting and communications.

Jerry Tarver is professor emeritus at the University of Richmond, where he was head of the speech department. He has conducted hundreds of seminars, teaching many thousands of communication professionals how to write speeches. He's author of The Speechwriter's Manual, published by Ragan Communications.

An award-winning speechwriter and public speaker, Pete Weissman spent more than a dozen years helping leaders in the White House and United States Senate and writing for the CEO/Chairman of The Coca-Cola Company. In 2009, he launched his own firm, Pete Weissman Communications, which establishes clients as Thought Leaders and helps corporations, foundations and associations achieve their business goals through creative and successful communications.