Analyzing Digital Rhetoric
For this assignment, I examined the BuzzFeed article on the mistreatment of children in Catholic orphanages.
This article was published on August 27 of this year, on the tails of the #MeToo movement, which brought to light the rampant sexual misconduct in Hollywood, and in the midst of the Catholic Church’s ongoing dealings with priests accused of sexual misconduct. In terms of kairos, this piece is timed perfectly, published in a moment when the world is watching the Church, and paying a greater deal of attention to sexual harassment and assault cases, which played a large part in this article.
In terms of ethos, Christine Kenneally, the author, pays careful attention to what she includes in this piece. She is certain to bring all of the evidence possible to the table and lends only minimal thought on the matter she is writing about, just enough to provoke thought on the audience’s part. It is clear that she spent an enormous amount of time compiling her research and chasing down every lead she could to make her report on this matter as accurate as possible. In addition to her evident thorough research, Kenneally is a senior contributor to the site, indicating experience as a journalist. Because of all of these factors, this article is almost undoubtedly highly credible.
In terms of pathos, Kenneally knows just how to tug on her audience’s heartstrings. The pictures she selected to include in this article provide a haunting image for the readers to piece together. The careful wording of Kenneally’s original sentences and the even more careful selection of quotes and interview segments within the article leave the audience with their hearts aching by the end of it, but unable to do anything other than finish reading the article. Kenneally’s writing and the visuals that go along with it are incredibly well crafted and curated. I found myself unable to stop reading, despite the horrible subject matter of the article.
In terms of logos, Kenneally once again blew me away right from the very start. The arrangement of pictures at the beginning of the article and unique way they scrolled was reminiscent of a scene in a spy movie, I almost felt as though I was on my way to uncovering something for myself. She had me hooked without even writing a word. Immediately after the opening scroll of images, the story from Sally Dale only sunk the hooks in further. I was intrigued, and wanted to know how much more there could possibly be to a story such as Dale’s. The images and this short snippet of Dale’s story were the perfect hook to draw the reader in, and this remarkable formatting only continued throughout the entirety of Kenneally’s piece. She includes images at just the right moments, pulls out and bolds just the right sentences to keep her readers immersed in what can almost be called an entire experience. Despite the heavy topic, and how difficult it was for me to read the whole article, I found that I could not do anything other than finish it, because I was so drawn in by Kenneally’s style of formatting and writing.
Overall, Kenneally seemed to have the perfect use of all of the rhetorical appeals, right down to the moment she posted this article. It was extremely compelling and by far one of the most interesting and well put together pieces I’ve read in a while.
