Tuition is going up to 40.00 per unit I hear!

"Thousands of students, teachers and parents in California and across the country are expected to stage rallies, demonstrations, walkouts and other actions Thursday to decry what they say is an assault on public education at all levels." Read more at http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-protests4-2010mar04,0,4387493.story

"Tomorrow's so-called Day of Action is in response to education funding cuts that have affected schools nationwide, but have been especially severe in California, where public colleges and universities have canceled classes, ordered furloughs and layoffs and enacted unprecedented student fee increases" (Rivera TIMES).

The budget is a wreck, it seems! Colleges need more money and will offer fewer classes too...As a public speaker, smarty and all around SCC superstar, what can you do to send the message to the top--We need to make it easier for everyone who wants to to go to school, not HARDER! Agree? Disagree? Sleeping? Chime in!Smiles--S

I Can See the Writing on the Wall...I mean the palm.................

Yo kids, I have lost my voice completely, Steve is THRILLED!!!! Haha...I can whisper...don't forget we meet at the cafeteria tomorrow, 2/23...bring your typed responses on the Bono Speech(not Bow-No) from the book in chpt 25. I have tosay I am really enjoying our class discussions--still cracking up about sharing embarassing stories!!! For this blog I want you to tell me what you thinkof the Whole Palm Gate scandal??? review the text and short video below to get in on the scandal:
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/features/view/feature/Palins-Palm-Gate-721


I don't want your personal opinion of Palin.

What I want to hear is a discussion of why this "rhetorical act" matters and how it challenges our ideas of "Competent" leaders and "cheating" --why does it matter that this was a pen note on her hand instead of her using a teleprompter? Does it matter? What kind of expectations do we have of our leaders when it comes to public speech? How does "Palm-gate" violate or challenge those expectations? Most importantly: Who is  gonna buy my coffee Wed? JK!!!

Oh John, What Were Ya Thinkin'? Audience Analysis Much?

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/stopthepresses/106715/john-mayer-breaks-down-in-tears-after-public-apology/

DO NOT USE THE KEY TERM OF THIS CONTROVERSY IN YOUR POST. REFER TO THE TERM JOHN USED INAPROPPRIATELY AS ____.  (4 UNDERSCORE LINES AND A PERIOD)
ANY OTHER REPRESENTATION OF THE TERM WILL BE DELETED BY ME OUT OF RESPECT.

I just read this update on the John Mayer controversy du jour and I think it totally relates to our audience analysis component in 301. I'd like to get your input on the situ, but I want us to stick to our agenda. So avoid emotional reactions and instead, step into your rhetorical critic lab coats, fellow scholars and check out the on-stage apology at the You Tube link above along with YahooNews's take on the incident, or review the TEXT of the interview (uh, that would be the words not the pictures).

So I'm not asking for your personal opinion of the artist or his choices here, what I'd like is your take on where he went wrong analyzing his audience. What are the assumptions he seems to keep making about his "audience" that prove to be inaccurate? (He's got a long rep with "off the record tweets" and too much sharing about previous relationships. Elle Decor Magazine has an atricle on line about his Manhatten Apartment, and despite his lack of discretion, I have to say he's got a sweet pad. Anyhoo, I digressed...)

Assuming he had decent intentions, give John some "compassionate" feedback here, like we do for each other: Give him feedback on one thing he's done well to analyze and respond to his audience during and/or  since the interview and then point out one "opportunity" he needs to keep working on (ie: why did he think they'd percieve his use of the racial epitaph as acceptable? What did he mean, "trying to intellectualize the N-word?"

Movies and Clips

Owl Purdue On-Line writing lab for Movie/Film citations

Hi Bloggers! This week we will show video and or DVD clips for oral presentations! Click link above for a citation review for your film or TV show references. Things to remember: Cue up or know what scene or chapter you'll play before the speech. Adjust volume, face class rather than screen as much as possible, move around the room during the clip, set the clip up briefly but clearly (name of film, point of scene, maybe what to watch for). Quickly remove your media when finished to prep for the next speaker. For this blog, tell us what your all time favorite movie or program is? Why? Do you like humor or drama, or love stories or documentaries??? Finally, what can we learn about audience (our classmates) by seeing what others like and bring in to show us this week? PS: Showing the clip on Wed and hearing you guys crack up was fun for me! I love a good comedic moment, even at toddler viewing level!!! Hahahahaha...cough, choke, wheeze....

First Spring 2010 Blog for Sandra's 7:30am Class

First of all, whew! We got through the downpour, the deadly typhoon-monsoon of the begining semester and you lived to tell about it! People, we attend campus when it is still dark outside, are you crazy??? This class is EARLY early...I think I still had some dried toothpaste in the corners of my mouth yesterday during roll and a few of you were wearing pajamas! Any-hoo... here we are blogging, this week we'll talk about the State of The U speech by Mr. Pres, agent of change himself, Barack Obama! Here you can read some of the transcript for the speech if you missed it :
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100128/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_state_of_the_union_text

You may watch or read just a portion or the entire speech depending on your time restraints. As you consider a few things, I'd like to get your name (in your 6 line minimum post below, click on comments) and some thoughts about the rhetorical situation (speech context both physical AND emotional). Remember, though it is billed a live speech in front of a present audience of warm bodies (well, some of those senators may not have actually still been breathing...) the true intended audience of the state of the union address was who? Where? I don't want your personal opinion of our president here, I want insight and observation of a speech by a critical observer (YOU). What was one rhetorical situation-aspect that was somehow referred to in the speech? Check other entries and postings, repeating another student's answer will result in no credit for this blog. It was a LONG speech there'splenty of stuff to pull out and talk about! See you in class bloggers!!!

HAPPY BREAK EVERYONE!!!!!!!! HO HO HO!

Last Blog: Twas the night before finals....

..........when all through the crappy, filthy portable we call our classroom, not a creature was stirring (because even mice would reject our broken-down classroom and opt for a dumpster or something cozier) not even the teacher (exhausted by all the AMAZING persuasion she has experienced during your FAB speeches!) The stockings were hung-over the smudgy 15 year old white board ( a chimney? heck no! That would set the whole place on fire in no time, especially our paper-thin scrap wood walls) in hopes that the final (?) soon would be over with, not that we won't miss each other, (keep in touch on-line, if you haven't forgotten how to use the internet due to our ghetto/ low-tech room with only a dusty 1997 DVD and rusty overhead that projects straight onto the bare, banged-up wall).....FALALAL--LALALALA!

After my heart-warming holiday tale, I bid you farewell from COMM 301 blog-land--double credit for this last posting: Pick a cultural practice important to you this time of year (could be ethnic/could be spiritual/could be familial in nature) and tell us about it in a couple sentences...then relate it to the concept of audience analysis--perhaps the most important skill you will take away from this class--considering and adapting as sensitively as possible to your listeners and making it clear that we are all very different, but if we want to have important, difficult and eye-opening discussions, we can find common ground and convey mutual respect--REMEMBER: reasonable people can and often do differ in opinions but most of us want the overall big picture goals in life: Happiness, stability, love and connections. Your mastery of persuasion along with our thrilling political debate next week between Ryan and Brad are grounded in these closing ideas of the fall 2009 semester! See you at Coffee Garden on Franklin this Wed Dec 2nd at 8pm, I will bring the final details, you bring cofee $$ and your textbook/paper and pen and your "sacred writng log" or journal or stack of messy crumpled papers--call 799-7930 if you get lost--Smiles and Hope--Your proud teacher!