PowerPoint is Evil?

Back in 2003, Yale professor of political science Edward Tufte wrote about the evils of PowerPoint.  His argument that PowerPoint focuses on looking cool rather than content stands up over time, but I still have issues with many of his points.

There's nothing inherently "evil" about presentation software, it comes down to the presenter.  Tufte maintains that at the elementary grades PowerPoint typically has a few pieces of art, and no more than 40 words.  I don't find anything really wrong with this; PowerPoint is about public speaking, and if that is a skill students need to learn then there is no harm in making an engaging presentation.

The harm comes when a presentation breaks the 3 level format:
1. Tell us what you will say
2. Say it
3. Tell us what you said

Most importantly, however, is that less is more.  A good presentation uses PoiwerPoint as a supplement, not a platform where the presenter reads every word and calls it a day.