Audience Podcast- My notes

Audience Podcast- My notes

Audience: Why English Class is not like Math class. One of the most important things to understand about college level writing is writing for an appropriate audience. This means writing for college professors is going to different than the writing that was done in high school. This means writing for professor Jones is going to be slightly different than writing for professor Smith. You wouldn’t could the exact same meal for two people with different tastes. You can’t write the exact same paper for two different audiences and have it be effective. In English class, we work with words, and one of the main things to understand about words is that we judge them based on a)whether they are correct and b) whether they are effective What we mean when we say writing is correct, is that it follows the standard rules of written English. What we mean when we say writing is effective, is that it gets the desired response from the audience. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- An example, 2+2= 4 You would write this the same way to an American and an Egyptian, a Brazilian, or South African. But you if you wanted to express thanks, you would write a different word to all four of these people. The point is that, in order to be effective, the words have to change when the audience changes. ------------------------------------------------------------ Because of this, it is smart to ask ourselves several questions about the audience for our particular paper when choosing a topic. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- AUDIENCE PODCAST Imagine that you are in the airport of a foreign country, and you suddenly realize that you need to go to the bathroom. You scan the section of the terminal, looking up and down the long corridors for signs. People hurry by in all directions, so you decide to stop one of them. Over and over you say, “where is the nearest bathroom?” But many of the travelers do not stop. And those that stop don’t speak English. Suddenly, at the last second, you remember that you are in Mexico, where the people speak Spanish. When you turn to the next person, you say, “donde esta el banjo?” He quickly responds by pointing down the hall, allowing you to dash off in time to avoid an embarrassing situation. [Pause] That anecdote is meant to prove a point, that smart people know that audience is important. In this podcast, I will explain why audience is important. Then I will cover the three main ways writing can be tailored to an audience. While I am explaining those things, I will give you a short list of concrete suggestions for how to tailor your writing for an academic audience. In order to gain something from listening to this, you will need to get out a pen and paper. When you hear me say the phrase: What You Need To Know, write down what I say. After listening, look at some of the examples and practice exercises, to get a better understanding. WHY AUDIENCE IS IMPORTANT Once of the most important things to understand about human communication is that we judge it differently than we judge mathematics. We judge communication according to the situation where it occurs. We call that situation the context. Since this is the case, a good communicator, a smooth talker tailors what he has to say to a specific audience. Since this is the case, a smart student or a successful employee does the same thing. There are lots of examples from daily life of judging words based on their contexts. If a person says something hurtful during an angry confrontation, we judge it differently than we would if it was said calmly over dinner. Comedians in comedy clubs say outrageous things that would get most people fired if the same statements were made at work. In other words, we judge whether a statement is appropriate by when and where it was said. We also judge it by whether it has its desired effect. Considering audience when speaking or writing is one of the most important things you can do to guarantee you are going to get the desired effect, whether you are writing a college essay or approaching a stranger to ask where the bathroom is. How TO CHANGE WHAT YOU ARE SAYING OR WRITING ACCORDING TO YOUR AUDIENCE There are three basic ways to adapt to an academic audience: choosing your words, choosing your examples, and choosing your presentation. These three methods are designed to give the audience the information they need in a way that they find convincing. Choosing words The first way we change our message to suit an audience is by changing the words we use to describe things. We use words that are familiar to the audience so that we avoid having to give unnecessary information. If I am talking to my grandmother, I say I sent a message to my friend. If I am talking to my girlfriend, I say that I texted them. This prevents my grandmother from becoming confused by a new word, and it keeps me from having to give an unwanted explanation. What you need to know is this: In academic papers, we avoid using words that are loaded with emotional connotations. We also try to use key terms from a subject in order to appeal to a specific audience. Choosing examples When writing a paper or trying to make a point, it is important to choose examples carefully. If you choose the wrong example, your audience might be confused, unconvinced, or offended. If you choose a truly terrible example, your audience might become all three. What you need to know is this: Different types of examples are considered to be more or less credible in a given subject. Within that subject, certain types of examples are going to be more or less effective. In academic writing, you want to find examples that are credible, comprehensible, and compelling to a wide audience. In general, this means avoiding pop culture references, personal experiences, and clichés. Pop culture references might not be understood. Personal experiences might not be believed, and clichés are not compelling. Some of the best examples to use are examples that relate to the personal lives of the members of your audience. Throughout these podcasts, I will be using a large number of examples about school, eating, work, and parents. I chose to do this because my audience is largely college students. Choosing your presentation Choosing the way you present your ideas is the third way to adapt to an audience, and it is the most difficult. It is much like choosing the outfit your wear to work or to school. Some people throw on the first thing that they see in their closet and walk out the door. If you’ve ever seen how I dress, you’ll know that I’m that type of guy. Other people plan out an entire outfit, making sure that the shoes match their shirt or their earrings match their necklace. When those people walk around, everyone who sees them gets the message, “I care about the way I look.” In college, choosing the way you present your ideas is all about sending the message that “I care about what I have to say in this paper.” What you need to know: In academic writing, your audience has certain expectations. There are different formats for different subjects, but you must be certain to follow those formats. Search online for a sample paper if you need help matching an MLA or an APA format paper. If your paper has specific requirements, you must be certain to meet those requirements. So let me recap the main points for you. For any audience, you will need to change the way you communicate in order to be effective. For an academic audience, you need to watch your word choices. Avoid slang. Include technical terms when you can be sure the audience will know them. Avoid terms with emotional connotations when possible. For an academic audience, you will need to watch your choice of examples. Usually this means no personal experiences, no pop culture references, and no clichés. And finally, for an academic audience, you will need to watch your presentation of ideas. If you are asked to do a certain type of paper, it is academic suicide not to follow the expected format.