Category Archives: Online Discourse

Buyer Beware, Rhetor Beware

Posted on August 15, 2013 by Todd Battistelli

My mobile phone service provider Ting tweeted about an endorsement they received on reddit recently. Commericial rhetoric often serves as classroom fodder for analysis of manipulative persuasive techniques, but the reddit discussion demonstrates some different problems that arise in a context … Continue reading →

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Visualizing Astroturf

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Todd Battistelli

Via Adam Lee’s Daylight Atheism, I came across Geoff Ó Laoidhléis interesting use of word frequency analysis to uncover evidence of an astroturfed anti-abortion group. The group Pro Life Atheists claims to represent atheists opposed to legal abortion. However, Laoidhléis’ analysis … Continue reading →

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The Internet Is Serious Business. Seriously.

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Todd Battistelli

I’ve been browsing Colin Beavan’s No Impact Man blog in preparation for this year’s Rhetoric 306 First Year Forum program, and the comments on a recent post provide a wealth of problematic argumentation. Of course, finding poor rhetorical behaviors in the comments of a blog is … Continue reading →

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