The Toulmin Method

 The Toulmin Method is a style of analyzing arguments developed by the philosopher, Stephen Toulmin (Green, 345). The method is comprised of six elements: claims, reasons, evidence, warrants, qualifiers, and rebuttals (Green, 348). Claims, reasons, and evidence are the bulk of the main structure of the argument while warrants, qualifiers, and rebuttals add to the strength of said argument. 

The claim of an argument could be "consuming trans-fats is unhealthy."

The reason for that claim is that "Trans-fats increase your risk of heart disease." 

The evidence would be something based on a study or facts, such as "In a 4-week study in which trans fats replaced saturated fats, HDL (good) cholesterol dropped 21% and artery dilation was impaired by 29%" (Bots, de roos, Katan, 2001).

A warrant is an underlying belief or unstated assumption about the claim itself (Green, 346). Warrants often go unstated because they are usually assumed. For example, "being unhealthy is a bad thing," would be the warrant for this example.

A qualifier is a component that can specify the claim. By adding a qualifier, your argument is stronger because it takes into account the exceptions. For example, "consuming too many artifically occuring trans-fats is unhealthy."

Lastly, A rebuttal is "a statement that shows that the writer has anticipated counterarguments and diffused them by showing their flaws" (Green, 348).  A rebuttal itself can turn into an argument of it's own, so it's best to be prepared if the counterargument is anticipated.

In the youtube video, The Toulmin Model of Argument, Stephen Klien gives a fantastic explanation of the method, and uses President Obama's speech as an example for the components. The speech Klien references is President Obama's response to Syria using chemical weapons. 

Works cited 

 MB;, de Roos NM;Bots ML;Katan. “Replacement of Dietary Saturated Fatty Acids by Trans Fatty Acids Lowers Serum HDL Cholesterol and Impairs Endothelial Function in Healthy Men and Women.” Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 21 July 2001, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11451757/.

Green, J. M. (2017). Communicating online. United States: McGraw Hill Education Create. Retrieved February 16, 2021, from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781307589122/cfi/0!/4/2@100:0.00

Podcast Review

    This morning I listened to the episode, "How to Show Up Online," from the podcast, "Difficult Happens." In this episode, Laura and the guest speaker, Deborrah Ashley talk about a few topics ranging from LinkedIn, dealing with trolls, to the permanence of social media activity.

    In regards to Linkedin, Deborrah gives a few tips on how to maximize the effectiveness of the site. She states that the most important aspect is your profile. it should be a "well-optimized profile that positions you as an expert in your field" (Currie 4:50). When someone shares a piece of content, most of the time the viewers will check out the poster's profile to know where this information is coming from and to see if it's a reliable source. As well, people are able to view your activity on your Linkedin profile. This means that it's important to consider what you share on the internet and how you react to other people. As Deborrah puts it, "Everything you put out on social media nowadays, whether you screenshot it, (or if someone) takes a look at your activity, it's gonna stay with you forever" (Currie 5:56). I think this is important not only for professional online communication sites but more casual social media platforms as well. For one, it's better to have a respectful history of online interactions so you're not making an environment worse. Secondly, some employers are very resourceful when it comes to finding background information about a potential employee. If the account is public, assume that everything you post will be seen by anyone.

    Laura and Deborrah also talk about the amount of trolling they can sometimes experience, both being notable figures when it comes to both Linkedin and online communication podcasts. Trolling, similar to flaming, is when someone intentionally tries to upset someone or a group of people online. Most of the time, trolling will result in "flame-wars," in which the troll tries to bring out the worst in someone. The book, Communication Online, by Julia Green, defines flaming as "Hostile online language that creates a toxic climate for relationship development and growth" (p.105). If either speaker were to fall into these "flame-wars," their viewers would be able to see the interaction and it could have consequences on their reliability. Rather, Deborrah mentions that people often troll because they are deprived of something. It should be seen and dealt with from the perspective of empathy.

Sources

Currie, Lara. “‎Difficult Happens; Effective Communication for Bosses: How to Show Up Online with Deborrah Ashley on Apple Podcasts.” Apple Podcasts, 18 Aug. 2020, podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-show-up-online-with-deborrah-ashley/id1358426248?i=1000488461621.

Green, J. M. (2017). Communicating online. United States: McGraw Hill Education Create. Retrieved February 16, 2021, from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781307589122/cfi/0!/4/2@100:0.00

The battle for public opinion

    Social media has played a huge role in the 2020 civil rights movement and protests. Because information spreads like wildfire, so did the news and information for protests. Many protests happened during COVID, and it was still possible for people to advocate their views and to have their voices heard through the use of social media. As well, many people were able to post links to petitions, articles, and news sources, all relating to the events happening at the time. Without social media, it would only be possible to see the outrage in person or through news coverage (which is sometimes quite biased).

    With everyone joining Black Lives Matter protests, then came many incidents of police brutality. Luckily, because everyone nowadays has a smartphone, it was easy to record something if someone went out of control. Obviously, these videos would be posted to the internet and within a few days or less, the video would be viral. The number of horrifying videos demonstrating police brutality was truly shocking and extremely disturbing. Fortunately, these videos will not be forgotten and will forever be on the internet, so they will not be erased from history. Rather than textbooks and writing to document history, there will be many live videos and pictures of the incidents, which will give a clearer picture of what was going on.

    I think social media has done a lot of great things to raise awareness about these current events, but it can also lead to avoidance of real issues. Because people conform to their peer's use of social media, I saw many posts on Instagram stories, often of the same article or video, which is great! But what did it change besides bringing more awareness... to the same community of people who have seen the same exact post a few times earlier? I think that in many instances, people would post something like this for a superficial reason; to let their peers know that they too stand against these issues, instead of actually trying to make a change. The best example I can think of for this is #blackouttuesday, an Instagram trend in which people posted a black square with that exact hashtag, #BLM, or something similar. Of course, awareness is great but I think it also made it difficult for those using the hashtags to find relevant information.

The Circuit Bouldering Gym

    I chose my favorite business, The Circuit! The Circuit is a portland based chain of bouldering gyms that first started in 2005. They currently have four gyms; three in the Portland area and one in Bend. They communicate primarily through three different social media platforms; Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. On their website, they also post every event and the calendar date under the "News + Events" section. In this section, you can also subscribe to their news and updates through email. Because of the number of ways you can stay updated, I would claim that communication through their online presence is extremely effective.

    The first page of the website is somewhat minimalistic. They have their logo and company name spelled out in large uppercase letters in the middle of the screen with clips of people climbing and socializing in the background. Just under the logo and company name, there are two buttons. One gives you the option to sign and waiver and the other gives you an option to make a reservation. Because of the pandemic, reservations are required so this is a new implementation. This shows that they are keeping up to date with their website. I think the minimalistic design was a conscious choice to draw attention to either making a reservation or signing a waiver. On the upper right side of the first page, there's a list of different buttons including locations, COVID-19 news, instruction, rates, etc.

    The Circuit does have an online identity that is mainly present through Twitter, but their other social media platforms as well. Through Twitter, they'll post something nearly every day. They post memes, videos, and relevant articles, accentuating their online identity. On Facebook and Instagram, they'll sometimes have an employee make a video with tips on a range of topics including building a home wall, info for yoga instruction, and home workouts.

    Although there's a video for each location, it doesn't do a great job of showing the layout of each gym. The videos are flashy and cool, but it's somewhat disorientating for someone whos never visited. I think if they added pictures of each section of the gym, it would give visitors a better idea of the space.