Journal•ISSN: 1094-8392
Rhetoric and public affairs
Michigan State University
About: Rhetoric and public affairs is an academic journal published by Michigan State University. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Rhetoric & Rhetorical question. It has an ISSN identifier of 1094-8392. Over the lifetime, 813 publications have been published receiving 9290 citations. The journal is also known as: Rhetoric and public affairs & R & PA.
Topics: Rhetoric, Rhetorical question, Politics, Democracy, Public policy
Papers published on a yearly basis
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TL;DR: The authors identified another metaphor present in popular media coverage of immigration, particularly visual images of immigrants, and argued that the metaphor of "immigrant as pollutant" present in news media discourse on immigration can have serious consequences for societal treatment of immigrants as well as the policies designed to respond to immigration.
Abstract: Popular rhetoric about immigration often operates by constructing metaphoric representations of immigrants that concretize the social "problem" and connote particular solutions. Scholars have identified discursive connections between the rhetoric of immigration and representations of other human problems such as crime or war. This essay identifies another metaphor present in popular media coverage of immigration, particularly visual images of immigrants. The metaphor of "immigrant as pollutant" present in news media discourse on immigration can have serious consequences for societal treatment of immigrants as well as the policies designed to respond to immigration.
273 citations
TL;DR: The authors examines three cases that have been identified by scholars as “manufactured” scientific controversies, in which rhetors seek to promote or delay public policy by announcing that there is an ongoing scientific debate about a matter for which there is actually an overwhelming scientific consensus.
Abstract: This article examines three cases that have been identified by scholars as “manufactured” scientific controversies, in which rhetors seek to promote or delay public policy by announcing that there is an ongoing scientific debate about a matter for which there is actually an overwhelming scientific consensus. The comparative study of argumentative dynamics in the cases of AIDS dissent, global warming skepticism, and intelligent design reveals the deployment of rhetorical traps that take advantage of balancing norms and appeals to democratic values. It also reveals the ineffectual counterarguments marshalled by defenders of mainstream science. By exploring the inventional possibilities available to those who would respond to manufactured scientific controversies, this article equips readers and their students to confute deceptive arguments about science and engage in a more productive public debate. In so doing, this article initiates an Isocratean orientation to the rhetoric of science as a field of study.
195 citations
TL;DR: Since 1999, George W Bush has consistently evoked the legacy of the "greatest generation" and used World War II analogies to characterize the world in a simple, dualistic fashion that evades a critical engagement with history as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Since 1999, George W Bush has consistently evoked the legacy of the "greatest generation" Moreover, since September 11, 2001, Bush's use of World War II analogies has intensified Such analogies capitalize on post-Cold War historical memory and lend credibility to the war on terrorism, yet they characterize the world in a simple, dualistic fashion that evades a critical engagement with history
133 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue that the media's tragic framing of the Matthew Shepard murder, with an emphasis on the scapegoat process, functioned rhetorically to alleviate the public's guilt concerning anti-gay hate crimes and to excuse the public of any social culpability.
Abstract: This essay undertakes a detailed frame analysis of print media coverage of the Matthew Shepard murder in three nationally influential newspapers as well as Time magazine and The Advocate. We contend that the media's tragic framing of the event, with an emphasis on the scapegoat process, functioned rhetorically to alleviate the public's guilt concerning anti-gay hate crimes and to excuse the public of any social culpability. It also functioned ideologically to reaffirm a dominant set of discourses that socially stigmatizes gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered persons and to hamper efforts to create and enact a social policy that would prevent this type of violence in the future. A concluding section considers Burke's notion of the \"comic frame\" as a potential corrective for the media's coverage of public tragedies.
123 citations
TL;DR: This paper explored the ways in which President George W. Bush explained the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and found that through his choice of genre, use of visual imagery, and creation of an American people, Bush crafted the authority to dominate public interpretation of those events and the appropriate response to them.
Abstract: This essay explores the ways in which President George W. Bush explained
the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Through his choice of genre,
use of visual imagery, and creation of an American people, Bush crafted
the authority to dominate public interpretation of those events and the
appropriate response to them.
123 citations