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2015

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Articles 31 - 60 of 172

Full-Text Articles in Speech and Rhetorical Studies

Hosting A Tournament, Larry Schnoor, Ben Stewart Dec 2015

Hosting A Tournament, Larry Schnoor, Ben Stewart

Speaker & Gavel

There comes a time in one's tenure as a Forensic Coach when one may think of hosting a tournament for various reasons. This can be a wonderful and meaningful experience for both you and the attending coaches and students, but it carries with it many challenges and a great deal of work. In trying to deal with what needs to be considered and planned in order to host a successful tournament, there are numerous elements that need to be given consideration. This article will at-tempt to provide you with guidelines and conditions to consider before one makes the final decision …

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The First-Year Coach, Keith Bistodeau Dec 2015

The First-Year Coach, Keith Bistodeau

Speaker & Gavel

The first year coaching a team is both exciting and terrifying. The first year coaching a team is your first taste of the career you may be doing for the rest of your life, on top of teaching, research, having a family, and having social life. Some of you reading this article may have a plethora of experience in forensics as a competitor, graduate student assistant, judge, sibling, or friend, while others may have no experience in forensics at all. Don’t worry; we have all been in your shoes in one way or another. This article is a checklist for …

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Budget Considerations, Larry Schnoor Dec 2015

Budget Considerations, Larry Schnoor

Speaker & Gavel

There are many responsibilities and duties for the director of forensics. One such responsibility that every coach will have to give very careful consideration and attention is the budget necessary for a sound forensic program. Yes, the question of funds is very important when one considers beginning and maintaining a sound forensic program in any college or university. We only have to look at how the events of the past few years have provided us with the evidence that our administrators are under the gun to tighten financial expenditures and in doing so, have begun to look closely at departments …

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Judge Training: Judging Individual Events, Judging Parliamentary Debate, Judging Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Todd T. Holm, Justin Foote Dec 2015

Judge Training: Judging Individual Events, Judging Parliamentary Debate, Judging Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Todd T. Holm, Justin Foote

Speaker & Gavel

This article provides a tournament di-rector with a self-contained judge training packet that can be copied and handed to judges or modified with your tournament specific information. This article ex-plains the mechanics of judging Individual Events, Parliamentary Debate, and Lincoln-Douglas Debate by providing lay judges with help in terms of how to express their thoughts about the event they just watched. The following material does not, nor should any judge training, mandate what is good or bad in a perfor-mance, but rather describes how to provide valuable feedback based on their ed-ucated reactions to the performances.

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"It's Only A Hired": An Instructional Look At The Forensic Ballot, Kittie Grace Dec 2015

"It's Only A Hired": An Instructional Look At The Forensic Ballot, Kittie Grace

Speaker & Gavel

The judge’s ballot, within the forensic community, is used as an educational tool. Yet, the tool is often dismissed by the students it is designed to help (Choui-nard, 2010). College forensic competitors repeatedly discredit ballots, especially if they are written by a “hired,” or nontraditional, judge (Hanson, 1998b). Through a content analysis, this study identifies that ballots from both hired judges or non-traditional judges and traditional judges (coaches) provide “speech acts” that in-struct students about their performances (Austin, 1962, p. 5). This research looks at the specific speech act differences identified between nontraditional and tradi-tional judge messages. The analysis suggests …

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(Re)Building A Team Culture, Todd T. Holm Dec 2015

(Re)Building A Team Culture, Todd T. Holm

Speaker & Gavel

The purpose of this article is to provide a director of forensics who wishes to rebuild a forensics program with advice, ideas, and guidance based on organiza-tional theory, organizational change research, and lived experience. This article approaches organizational culture as a dynamic construct of an organization. “Proponents of the perspective of culture as a dynamic construct are interested in both a better understanding of organizations through application of a cultural per-spective and a conscious development of organizational culture” (Sackmann, 1990, p. 133). This perspective treats culture as something an organization is and something an organization has. The shaping of forensics …

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Genesis Of A Special Issue, Daniel Cronn-Mills Dec 2015

Genesis Of A Special Issue, Daniel Cronn-Mills

Speaker & Gavel

Notes from guest editor Daniel Cronn-Mills on the special issue of volume 52 of Speaker & Gavel.

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Complete Issue 52(2) Dec 2015

Complete Issue 52(2)

Speaker & Gavel

Complete digitized issue (volume 52, issue 2) of Speaker & Gavel.

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Bully Or Dupe?: Governor Chris Christie’S Image Repair On The Bridge Lane Closure Scandal, William L. Benoit Dec 2015

Bully Or Dupe?: Governor Chris Christie’S Image Repair On The Bridge Lane Closure Scandal, William L. Benoit

Speaker & Gavel

In 2013, two lanes leading to the George Washington Bridge – the busiest in the nation – in Fort Lee, NJ, were closed. In January of 2014, it emerged that Christie’s Deputy Chief of Staff Kelley instigated this problem. Governor Christie was accused of retaliating against Fort Lee’s Mayor Mark Sokolich, who had not endorsed Christie’s re-election bid. Christie fired Kelley, held a press conference, and apologized to Sokolich and the people of Fort Lee. Christie’s primary strategies were mortification and corrective action, but he also used denial, differentiation, minimization, and defeasibility to deal with this situation. Minimization was interesting …

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Foreign Policy Rhetoric In The 1992 Presidential Campaign: Bill Clinton’S Exceptionalist Jeremiad, Jason A. Edwards Dec 2015

Foreign Policy Rhetoric In The 1992 Presidential Campaign: Bill Clinton’S Exceptionalist Jeremiad, Jason A. Edwards

Speaker & Gavel

This essay examines presidential candidate Bill Clinton’s rhetoric regarding America’s role in the world during the 1992 presidential campaign. Despite the fact that foreign policy was George H.W. Bush’s strength during the campaign, candidate Clinton was able to develop a coherent vision for America’s role in the world that he carried into his presidency. I argue he did so by fusing together the American exceptionalist missions of exemplar and intervention. In doing so, Clinton altered a tension embedded in debates over U.S. foreign policy rhetoric. To further differentiate his candidacy from President Bush, Clinton encased this discourse within a secular …

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Copycat Forensics: How Social Learning Problematizes Intercollegiate Forensic Performances, Alyssa Reid Dec 2015

Copycat Forensics: How Social Learning Problematizes Intercollegiate Forensic Performances, Alyssa Reid

Speaker & Gavel

This paper highlights noticeable problems stemming from students adopting forensic norms without critiquing practice. Although many pedagogically sound reasons account for some structural similarities in events, many performance choices enacted in forensic competition are not grounded in educational principles but are learned and fostered through social learning. Currently, students can achieve forensic success without developing sound reasons for performance choices. Uncovering the ways in which students, judges, and coaches, produce and reproduce copycat performances can improve overall academic and competitive rigor.

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The 2015 State Of Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha, Ben Walker Dec 2015

The 2015 State Of Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha, Ben Walker

Speaker & Gavel

Brief history and update of the Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha organization.

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Descriptive Analysis Of Ted Cruz's Announcement Speech, Jacqueline A. Bast Dec 2015

Descriptive Analysis Of Ted Cruz's Announcement Speech, Jacqueline A. Bast

Rhetorical Analyses of the Announcement Speeches of Presidential Hopefuls

No abstract provided.

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Steve Jobs’ Use Of Ethos For Persuasive Success In His 2005 Stanford Commencement Address, Keith Bistodeau Nov 2015

Steve Jobs’ Use Of Ethos For Persuasive Success In His 2005 Stanford Commencement Address, Keith Bistodeau

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

The use of ethos in persuasive settings has always been a powerful tool in public speaking, especially by those in power and in businesses. Kenneth Burke’s Pentad plays a primary role in persuasive situations, particularly when we as scholars try to dissect and understand specific aspects of a speech situation. In this essay I used Burke’s Pentad as a framework to explore Steve Jobs’ use of, as I term it, “internal and external ethos” as not only a persuasive mechanism, but also as a force to build his persona/mythological legacy.

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Myth And The Paris Commune, Katie Brunner Nov 2015

Myth And The Paris Commune, Katie Brunner

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

The Paris Commune of 1871 is an event in history that has had a special place in the hearts of many revolutionaries. Karl Marx called it “the first successful working class revolution”. This paper looks at the events of the Paris Commune, as recounted in a work produced 25 years after the event occurred and, by means of comparison with more recent accounts, examines how it moved from a historical “reality” to a mythic history through the lens of secondary framing and historical mythology. This approach to the Paris Commune reveals many significantly different interpretations; pointing out that the true …

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God, Gays, And Voodoo: Voicing Blame After Katrina, Jefferson Walker Nov 2015

God, Gays, And Voodoo: Voicing Blame After Katrina, Jefferson Walker

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Much of the public discourse following Hurricane Katrina’s devastating impact on Louisiana and much of the Gulf Coast in 2005 focused on placing blame. This paper focuses on those critics who stated that Hurricane Katrina was “God’s punishment” for people’s sins. Through a narrative analysis of texts surrounding Hurricane Katrina, I explicate the ways in which individuals argued about God’s judgment and punishment. I specifically turn my attention to three texts: First, a Repent America press release entitled “Hurricane Katrina Destroys New Orleans Days Before ‘Southern Decadence,’” second, a newsletter released by Rick Scarborough of Vision America, and third, Democratic …

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Unanswered Prayers: A Study Of Apologia For God In The Matter Of Prayer, Dann L. Pierce Esq., Bohn D. Lattin Nov 2015

Unanswered Prayers: A Study Of Apologia For God In The Matter Of Prayer, Dann L. Pierce Esq., Bohn D. Lattin

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Many Christian writers and thinkers take up the vexing issue of unanswered prayer and thereby use various rhetorical strategies to address the intersection of pertinent teaching about prayer, and the disjunctive, problematic life experiences concerning the experience of unanswered pray-er. Our investigation uses the ancient rhetorical genre of apologia as a lens to better understand the tactics and stances taken up by those who seek to guide members of faith communities toward reconciliation between perceived biblical teaching and actual life experiences concerning unan-swered prayer. Our study incorporates an analysis of both the formal and conceptual strategies utilized by rhetors who …

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"I'M, Uhh, Sorry": The Influence Of Fluency And Communication Competence On Perceptions Of Apologies, Benjamin W. Chiles, Aileen L.S. Buslig Nov 2015

"I'M, Uhh, Sorry": The Influence Of Fluency And Communication Competence On Perceptions Of Apologies, Benjamin W. Chiles, Aileen L.S. Buslig

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This paper reports the results of an experiment that examined the influence of increasing levels of nonfluency in apologies on audience perceptions. The influence of self-perceived communicator competence (SPCC) on perceptions of apologies was also examined. Favorable ratings of apologies decreased as nonfluency increased from low to moderate levels, but then increased as nonfluency increased from moderate to high levels. For high nonfluency apologies, individuals with higher SPCC rated the apology more favorably than did individuals with lower SPCC. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

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This House Would Not Mix Burdens: The Conflation Of Fact, Value, And Policy In Npda, Crystal Lane Swift Nov 2015

This House Would Not Mix Burdens: The Conflation Of Fact, Value, And Policy In Npda, Crystal Lane Swift

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This paper explores the dispute in the forensic community over whether there is (or ought to be) a distinction between resolutions of fact, resolutions of value and resolutions of policy. This dispute is informed by philosophical literature on the subject in this paper. The philosophical positions are applied to the dispute in NPDA, and the author sides with the distinction rather than the collapse of the distinction. Theoretical, rhetorical, and pragmatic implications are drawn from the analysis, and pedagogical recommendations are made.

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Constitutional Rights In Post-9/11 America, Meredith Aby Nov 2015

Constitutional Rights In Post-9/11 America, Meredith Aby

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

On September 21, 2011, Meredith Aby accepted an invitation to speak on the subject of freedom of speech and association in ten years after 9/11. Her speech, which was sponsored by the Department of Communication Studies at Minnesota State University, the Kessel Peace Institute, and the Mankato Area Activist Collective, is more than a powerful defense of free speech the right to dissent. It is the personal account of an ordinary person of extraordinary conviction—an activist, a mother, a partner, a teacher, and a debate coach—for whom standing up for right to oppose one’s government is more than an abstract …

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"A Land Of Make Believe That Don’T Believe In Me": Dissent By Incongruity In Green Day’S "Jesus Of Suburbia", Jansen B. Werner Nov 2015

"A Land Of Make Believe That Don’T Believe In Me": Dissent By Incongruity In Green Day’S "Jesus Of Suburbia", Jansen B. Werner

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Following the September 11 terrorist attacks there were increased demands in America for patriotism. This attitude of hyper-patriotism, in accordance with the Bush Administration’s appropriation of the American civil religion, precluded many discursive possibilities for dissent. Yet there were some who still utilized the available outlets of public discourse to dissent from Bush Administration policies. Green Day’s 2004 song, “Jesus of Suburbia,” is just such an exemplary dissent discourse. What follows is divided into four sections. First, I analyze the ideological circumstances which preceded the release of “Jesus of Suburbia.” Second, I reflect on the respective conceptual insights of Ivie’s …

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Using Seinfeld To Enhance Storytelling Speeches, Kelly Soczka Kaiser Nov 2015

Using Seinfeld To Enhance Storytelling Speeches, Kelly Soczka Kaiser

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This classroom activity uses video clips from the sitcom, Seinfeld, in order to provide students with examples of the characteristics of exceptional storytellers and their ability to convey meaning. By applying the Freytag’s Pyramid to storytelling, students have found a tool to assist them in constructing a captivating narrative. These visual skits offer students an opportunity to view how a story is effectively organized, what elements comprise an extraordinary narrative, and how to dramatically display emotion.

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Identifying Teaching Effectiveness: Using Student Skill Surveys, Speech Evaluations, And Quiz Scores To Inform Instruction, Sally A. Blomstrom Nov 2015

Identifying Teaching Effectiveness: Using Student Skill Surveys, Speech Evaluations, And Quiz Scores To Inform Instruction, Sally A. Blomstrom

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This paper suggests an instrument for measuring students’ self perceptions of improvement in public speaking skills, i.e., a skill survey, and a method to inform and improve instruction by looking at results from that survey in combination with instructor evaluation forms for persuasive speeches, quiz scores, and an information literacy measure. Data were collected from students enrolled in a public speaking course at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Background on the survey development and the method is provided along with results and discussion.

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Explaining The Revolution: Vernacular Discourse And The Tipping Point In America’S 2006 Midterm Election, Ryan Michael Shepard Nov 2015

Explaining The Revolution: Vernacular Discourse And The Tipping Point In America’S 2006 Midterm Election, Ryan Michael Shepard

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

The 2006 midterm election marked perhaps the first time that the American public held the Bush administration accountable for its controversial actions. Various explanations have been offered for the backlash, ranging from public concern about the war to disgust over sex scandals involving prominent conservatives. In this essay, through analysis of vernacular discourse appearing in letters to the editor from USA Today, I argue that the election results stemmed from Bush’s weakening credibility – in respect to the dimensions of honesty, competence, and moderation – which limited the effectiveness of his rhetoric that was so powerful since September 11th.

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Paws, Pathos And Presidential Persuasion: Franklin Roosevelt’S "Fala Speech" As Precursor And Model For Richard Nixon's "Checkers Speech", John Llewellyn Nov 2015

Paws, Pathos And Presidential Persuasion: Franklin Roosevelt’S "Fala Speech" As Precursor And Model For Richard Nixon's "Checkers Speech", John Llewellyn

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

In autumn 1944 Franklin Roosevelt’s presidential campaign was losing momentum. Then, in Congressional debate, U. S. Representative Harold Knutson of Minnesota accused Roosevelt of extravagance, claiming he sent a Navy destroyer to the Aleutian Islands to retrieve his Scottish terrier. FDR parried these charges with "the Fala speech," a mocking and acerbic attack on Republicans ("No, not content with that, they now include my little dog, Fala") that reenergized his campaign. "The Fala speech" also indirectly rescued Richard Nixon. Under attack in the 1952 campaign, Nixon saved his vice presidential aspirations and political career with the "Checkers" address. However, the …

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The Art Of "Jesse-Talk": Speechwriting For Governor Jesse Ventura, Kristine Bruss Nov 2015

The Art Of "Jesse-Talk": Speechwriting For Governor Jesse Ventura, Kristine Bruss

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

In 1998, former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura stunned the political world by winning the race for governor of Minnesota. As a candidate, Ventura created impressions of honesty with his straightforward, candid style; even his inaugural address was unscripted. As governor, however, Ventura came to rely on a team of speechwriters to help him meet his speaking demands. In this essay, I present an interview with one member of Ventura’s communications team, Steve LeBeau, who addresses the challenge of writing speeches for an unconventional client with a penchant for improvisation. As the essay reveals, LeBeau’s background in media and theater helped, …

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Giving A Classmate An Award: Ceremonial Speaking Within The Classroom Environment, Heidi Hamilton Nov 2015

Giving A Classmate An Award: Ceremonial Speaking Within The Classroom Environment, Heidi Hamilton

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

As citizens we encounter ceremonial speaking occasions throughout our lives, from wedding toasts to retirement dinners to eulogies. While many textbooks offer guidelines for the various types of speaking occasions, these occasions are difficult to create within the classroom environment. Often instructors skip assigning a full ceremonial speech because of this. This activity is designed to provide students with an opportunity to practice some of the basic elements of ceremonial speaking, such as writing a thesis statement, providing supporting materials, and using magnification. Students are paired together, interview each other, and then present original award speeches to each other, thus …

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Assessing The Public Speaking Course, Roberta Freeman Nov 2015

Assessing The Public Speaking Course, Roberta Freeman

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

College and high school speech communication instructors know full well how tedious and timeconsuming assessment can be; however, this instructor has found a way to make assessment a more efficient and meaningful tool identifying strengths and weaknesses within the public speaking curriculum. After five years of extensive research, several drafts of rubrics and artifacts, the process has been streamlined and successful in that the data compiled reflects the strengths and challenges of this instructor’s students. This article is intended to provide public speaking instructors the opportunity to replicate part of the Minnesota State Community & Technical College (M State) speech …

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A Rationale For Incorporating Dystopian Literature Into Introductory Speaking Courses, James P. Dimock, Chad Kuyper, Peggy Dimock Nov 2015

A Rationale For Incorporating Dystopian Literature Into Introductory Speaking Courses, James P. Dimock, Chad Kuyper, Peggy Dimock

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Since Aristotle, teachers of public speaking have argued that an understanding of the audience’s beliefs, values, and assumptions about the world are the key to effective, persuasive speaking. All too often, however, public speaking courses either avoid audience analysis or focus on superficial details of the audience demographics. This paper makes the argument that by reading and discussing novels, students can develop an appreciation of their classmates as audience members and that dystopian fiction is especially well-suited to developing speech ideas that connect public speaking with the world outside the classroom. Teaching suggestions and lesson plans are included.

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Viewing Film From A Communication Perspective: Film As Public Relations, Product Placement, And Rhetorical Advocacy In The College Classroom, Robin Patric Clair, Rebekah L. Fox, Jennifer L. Bezek Nov 2015

Viewing Film From A Communication Perspective: Film As Public Relations, Product Placement, And Rhetorical Advocacy In The College Classroom, Robin Patric Clair, Rebekah L. Fox, Jennifer L. Bezek

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Academics approach film from multiple perspectives, including critical, literary, rhetorical, and managerial approaches. Furthermore, and outside of film studies courses, films are frequently used as a pedagogical tool. Their relevance in society as well as their valuable use in the classroom makes them an important and pragmatic medium deserving further attention. The ability of film to be used in a socio-political way may sustain, challenge or change the status quo, which supports studying film as well as teaching students about the power of film. The purpose of this article is to share the development of a course which points out …

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