This particular case is relevant to the course because it specifically grapples with the problem of communication, and why being able to communicate is such an important ability when working in the sciences. The whole problem presented in the article is that there are repeated clashes by the organizers of the March for Science and what their message is with the march. By conflicting with their own previous statements, specifically on what the march stands for, the organizers received heavy backlash by proponents and critics alike, which resulted in more controversy than the organizers were intending. The goal of the march was to show the government, and general public, that people care about science, and that science is necessary for society to function, but by mixing in the priorities of other protests, such as diversity and women within science, it makes a supposedly non-political protest political.
The main course term that comes to mind in this case is that of a discourse community. In this scenario, the March For Science Twitter account tried to appeal to other discourse communities, such as the ones previously mentioned, in order to gain legitimacy and more people for the march itself. The problem with bringing in these politically charged groups in, however, is that it takes the lens away from the march being about science and the cuts the government was making, and brings attention to the groups and ideas that get people heated, and therefore less likely to listen or pay attention to the march. In this case, the discourse communities do not blend well for illustrating a non-political protest towards the government’s actions. Overall, the lesson to take from this case is to be cautious when choosing outside sources to reference, as they may carry agendas and arguments that one would not want associated with what he or she is trying to get across. For my project, I am taking statements directly from staff of the Rhode Island Nature Conservancy that have to do with the parks and trails themselves, and limiting the personal blog to my own observations coupled with quotes from the interview. By doing this, I can reinforce my honest impressions with information and history presented from the interview.
1 Comment
Jacob Fies
4/9/2018 06:35:35 am
I totally agree with the connection between this case and what we have focused on in our class. I touched upon much the same ideas, but with a focus on keeping audience in mind, much like you did with discourse community (with these two topics actually being very similar as well). I also agree that when constructing our final projects these two areas of focus are of great importance when decided what information should be included in which genres.
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