In my last essay of this semester, I argued that steps need to be taken to improve voter turnout for elections in the United States. I provided a lot of statistical evidence comparing our low voter turnout to the other nations of the world, most of whom have much higher voter turnout than us. After showing the reader the problem, I began laying down the steps that we can take to insure that voter turnout increases. I picked solutions that are popular and widely talked about, although still argued, so that I could lay down the “they say, I say” in my essay. The purpose of my argument was to first show the reader the magnitude of this problem and then show ways that we can solve it.
After brainstorming for a little while, I realized that the key to my rhetorical revision was going to simplicity. I knew that with my limited artistic ability and the magnitude of my subject, I would need to keep my ad simple to get my point across. I didn’t want to overwhelm the audience with a bunch of words and statistics that would turn them off and make them completely ignore my rhetorical revision. I decided that a simple picture with very few words attached would be the most effective way to get my point across.
With the magnitude of my issue, my audience was rather large: the American people. I wanted to reach as many people as possible with this advertisement so I felt that using a billboard would be the most effective way. The use of a billboard goes along with the simplicity of it. People don’t have time to ready a paragraph as they zoom past at 75 miles per hour. The ad would have to be quick to the point and still powerful and effective. Another audience I wanted to pursue was people who are interested in politics, people who are much more likely to get involved in a topic like this. To reach this audience, I wanted to put this as an advertisement in Newsweek or another politically charged magazine. Although the way it was being advertised would change, I didn’t want to change my rhetorical revision. People don’t read magazines for the advertisements so I knew that my ad would have to still be simple.
For the background of my advertisement, I chose to use an American flag flying in a beautiful sunny sky with a few scattered clouds. The reason I chose the flag is how it immediately catches people’s attention. Everyone knows the American flag. It’s a powerful image, but so simple at the same time. Since this is a huge topic for the entire United States, I wanted to pull on people’s patriotism. However, I wanted to keep with my theme of simplicity and not overwhelm the audience with a collage of patriotic pictures. I knew that if I had pictures of the White House, the Iwo Jima Memorial, the Washington Monument, the American flag, and Uncle Sam, that it would turn many people off and they wouldn’t even look at the ad.
At the top of the ad it reads, “Did you know that Malaysia has higher voter turnout than the United States?” Once again, I wanted to call on people’s patriotism. I looked through the same research that I used to write my essay and found this interesting fact. By showing that Malaysia, a country considered by many Americans to be a third-world country, has higher voter turnout that the United States, I showed them how big of a problem this is. I wanted people to feel a sense of surprise, anger, astonishment, and wanting to fix that. I chose to use that simple sentence instead of overwhelming the audience with a list of facts and statistics.
At the bottom of the ad, it says, “We need change NOW.” This is a simple, yet powerful statement. The “NOW” is capitalized to bring attention to it and to drive the point home even more. After the first fact makes the audience surprised and angry, I wanted this phrase motivate them to act on those feelings. Also, the word “change” has been a pretty popular word over the last few months, used in the Presidential election by both parties. I wanted to jump on the “change” bandwagon for my specific argument.
At the bottom of the page, in smaller, but still plainly visible font, are the words, “Get involved today at www.fixthevote.org.” I want people to see the alarming fact, get motivated by the call to action at the bottom, then go straight to www.fixthevote.org. I don’t want this to be an ad where people read it and then forget about it right after they turn the page. I want it to stick out in their mind. Last, having the contact information adds to the ethos of the rhetorical revision by making it appear more credible.
When people view my ad, whether on a billboard or in a copy of Newsweek, I want them see it in a specific order. I want them to first see the American flag waving on a sunny day. This conjures up positive thoughts for most people and is a simple and immediate call on their patriotism. Next, they will read the fact at the top of the page. With their patriotism already called on, they will see that a nation considered “third-world” by most is outpacing their beloved United States in voter turnout. Now that they are appalled, they will see the call to action and the contact information at the bottom of the page. Simple, but effective.
I think that my rhetorical revision primarily appeals to the emotional, or pathos. I think that there is logos and ethos in the ad, but pathos is the strongest of the three. When people see the billboard or the ad in Newsweek, they will feel anger, embarrassment, and a strong desire to fix the problem. In simpler terms, the ad is saying “Did you know that they are beating us?” and I think that will motivate most people to get involved in solving this problem.
In conclusion, I wanted to create a billboard or Newsweek ad that would help solve one of the largest problems facing our nation, in my opinion. Although I had many solutions to this problem in my essay, I didn’t want to turn off my audience by overwhelming them with facts and statistics. Instead, I chose to simply call on their patriotism and motivate them to get involved, at which point they can learn about all the solutions I offered in my essay.
Image citation:
Davidson, Ashley. "American flag waving in the sky." 14 June 2006.
Online image. Google Image Search. 7 December 2008.
http://ccn1.net/POTD8/American-flag-attack-position.jpg
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