Journalism is one of the most underrated, yet essential professions in our society. Journalists are responsible for providing the basic understanding of the operations of local, national and global occurrences. It is intended to objectively inform the public on issues and topics that are both relevant and important to their everyday lives. The press serves as a watchdog for the government and its officials and keeps them in line when making and implementing policies. It is also the only profession clearly protected in the United States Constitution under the First Amendment. It is from this description that my image was created and publicized.
My image consists of a news story posted on what appears to be a news oriented website with the headline, “Katy Perry Unfollows Russell Brand on Twitter,” accompanied by a picture of the two celebrities embracing each other. The headline leads into more text along the right side of the picture going into greater detail of the relationship’s tragic demise. The altered text in the image by the rhetor displays “R.I.P. Journalism” at the top and “1456-2012” at the bottom, acknowledging the death of journalism.
When trying to fully analyze a piece of rhetoric such as this one, it is important to identify certain factors that combine to create an effective and persuasive message. These factors include the rhetor, exigence, audience and constraints of a visual argument. By being able to comprehend all of these aspects, we are prepared as viewers to formulate an informed response to the argument.
In journalism school, one is taught that credibility is vital for writing believable and trustworthy articles. This also applies to the rhetor of a visual argument. If the communicator is superficial or careless in his or her efforts to properly check facts and connect with an audience, the piece of rhetoric being written or shown will become obsolete. This image first spawned at the website, weknowmemes.com, but the individual producer of the image is not credited. The website in which this image appeared is generally known for supplying sarcastic and humorous material that can rarely be taken literally. Although the website’s reputation would hardly make it a credible source, the underlying reasoning for some of its postings, such as this one, evokes a subtle yet identifiable problem that the reader can simply recognize.
According to Laura Bolin Carroll’s essay “Backpacks vs. Briefcases,” it is crucial to understand a message’s exigence “because it helps you begin to discover the purpose of the rhetoric. It helps you understand what the discourse is trying to accomplish. (49)” For this image, the exigence is telling us that journalism is losing focus on newsworthy information and the very purpose of its formation. It suggests that tabloids and celebrity gossip are tainting the news feed of our pop culture and overshadowing more important social, political and economic issues. We live in a society that is so influenced by celebrities that we lose sight of real problems and topics. We care more about the personal lives of public figures than issues that seriously affect our everyday lives. This image is just one example of how news has turned more into a source of entertainment rather than what it was originally intended to do.
Audience is important when constructing a piece of rhetoric. Rhetors must know who they are talking to in order to build a bond with them through their message. The intended audience for this image is those that understand the value of traditional news and reporting. It is the people who do not get caught up the gossip of public figures and can separate what is relevant from what is nonsense. This audience seems to be more educated as citizens and news seekers.
The last factor to consider when looking at a visual argument is the constraints that affect it. Carroll illustrates that “constraints limit
the way the discourse is delivered or communicated. (49)” By knowing the constraints, rhetors can alter messages to fit within the confines of legal and intellectual hindrances. A constraint with this image, and with the media in general, is the idea of what constitutes news? There are so many different definitions of what is deemed “newsworthy” that, to some people, this information about Russell Brand and Katy Perry could be considered worth media attention. However this photo challenges the belief that celebrity action, especially in this miniscule act of unfollowing someone on Twitter, could be dubbed “newsworthy.”
1.I think you do a really good job of identifying each of the constituents. Another constraint you could add might be that this ad has a narrow audience, because it would have to be people that are up to date to social media and know who this couple is. I think it reaches people our age, and does a very good job of conveying their message, but to an older crowd it may not be as successful.
ReplyDelete2.I think you express the argument very well, and I understand the background of why this argument is being made. I also think it was really good idea that you added the significance of the numbers at the bottom, so everyone understands those signify the birth and death of journalism.
3.Add a part about logos, ethos and pathos. I think it plays with our emotions because it’s hilarious and therefore interests us more. It may also play on our logic because it is signifying how the world has changed from the day newspapers were invented. This idea makes people think and see that some things the media rights about are absolutely ridiculous.
4.Add a critique section. I think the visual argument gets its point across in a fun manner and is definitely effective to the right crowd.
5.I think the structure of the essay is done very well. Indent your first paragraph.
You could add more about Katy Perry and Russell Brand for a little more background if you wanted to, but it’s not necessary.