Speak to/speak of

I've noticed a recent trend in the U.S. in which "speak to" is substituted for "speak of" or "speak about". For example "can you speak to this issue?" rather than "can you speak about this issue?". An other recent usage of "speak to" that I've come across is as follows: "this reaction speaks to our concern about such and such" rather than "this reaction illustrates our concern about such and such"

I thought we spoke to people and about issues...

It sounds improper and like faddish "faux" sophistication to me. Am I missing something, am I just an old fart?

Thanks in advance!

PS: I am not a native English speaker and apologize if my question is out of line or has a very obvious answer that any Anglo would readily know.