What are the general types of public speaking?

 

1. Extemporaneous - Being able to take information/research and quickly assimilate it into a public speech to persuade others regarding a particular issue or concern. Lawyers, politicians, and debaters would obviously need very good skills "thinking on their feet" with this kind of public speaking.
2. Storytelling - Being able to tell a story in a entertaining and engaging way. Your goal is to capture the audiences attention.
3. Informative - If you specialize in a skill or trade, you may need to speak publically to educate and inform others of your job, skills, and the procedures you might use to perform some type of service. In the Utah cave tragedy... there has been debate about who should have been providing information about the search and rescue that was being done to help the trapped miners. The boss was doing a lot of the informing of the public... but, many felt the specialists who handle these kinds of emergency situations should have stepped up and been the link to the public.
4. Poetry - Whether you read or recite it... many people love to hear poetry in clubs and social events.
5. Newscasting/ Broadcasting - This is mostly a professional kind of public speaking that involves media - radio, newspaper, magazine, television, and internet forums obviously.
6. Persuasive - Debates and speeches given for certain forums use this method. It is designed too hook interest about some sort of dilemna, and the speaker's responsibility is to persuade the listener of his/her point of view - and to action. A person might give a speech about a health care issue, and persuade an audience to give monetarily to help with research. Or, two candidates for public office debate each other in front of an audience to present their policies and promises...
7. Entertaining - The purpose is solely to entertain people...make them laugh, make them cry and/or stimulate there emotions in some way. A play, a musical or movie... these often involve narratives and other types of speeches to convey information or a character's thought process.
8. Specialized - A doctor giving a lecture at a convention, or a special ed teacher instructing regular ed teachers regarding issues a disabled child might have.... these kinds of public speaking forums are designed to teach professionals. Demonstrations are often used to help show others what to do, and how to do it...in a given situation.
9. Ceremonial - At a funeral or wedding, awards ceremony, graduation, baptisms, swearing in...and other times in which people are honored, remembered, or some sort of important event that needs to be witnessed and represents a new part of a person's life.

source:answers.yahoo.com