For project 2, I will analyze online texts of organizations
and individuals that have opposing views on the legalization of marijuana. It
will be interesting to see how each side will construct arguments that are
meant to have contrasting effects on their audience. Although, the goal of both
is to acquire your vote.
Most of the texts that support marijuana reform hold onto a
green theme, obviously trying to link their words to the product they are
pushing for. They feature navigation bars with similar links such as: facts,
organize, legal, state info, etc. The organization run sites lean towards
professional rhetoric, speaking directly about legal issues, and failures of
the government. Blogs take more liberty and attempt to entertain by demonizing
the DEA while promoting the benefits of marijuana.
Texts that are against the legalization of marijuana are
harder to find given that their target audience has already heard most of the
reasons to keep weed illegal. The reform
sites, I believe, are targeted at a younger, more digitally literate group and
the sites are endless. Sites against marijuana have a common theme as well:
Marijuana destroys families. It is impossible to find green, unless there is a
red X over it, and the rhetoric is exclusively targeted at parents and
grandparents. They indicate how the reform is targeting teens but they fail target
anyone in the younger demographics.
It will be interesting to see which arguments come across
most successfully when accounting for the target audience. What will work on
teenagers is likely to be the opposite of what convinces parents to vote for.
Organizations Against
Marijuana
http://www.marijuanaharmsfamilies.com/
-a project of SaveCalifornia.com
http://www.calmca.org/
-Citizens Against Legalizing Marijuana
Organizations for Marijuana
Reform
-Just Say Now
http://norml.org/ -Working
to reform marijuana laws
http://www.drugpolicy.org/node/3480
-we are the Drug Policy Alliance
http://www.regulatemarijuana.org/about
-Campaign to regulate marijuana like alcohol
Relevant blogs
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/stopmarijuana/
-petition to stop legalization
http://www.theweedblog.com/former-dea-leaders-ask-holder-to-stop-state-marijuana-reform-initiatives/
-marijuana news and info
http://sensiblewashington.org/blog/
- help legalize in washington
1. I am also doing the legalization of marijuana, specifically i-502. I think the audience and context are the most important things to think about in this situation. The audience is important because in today's day and age, young people are the bulk of the swing voters and the support for the marijuana movement. The context is important because after years of scrutiny, people are finally beginning to see that marijuana doesn't negatively effect you as it has been displayed in the past.
ReplyDelete2. The color is the aspect that stands out to me the most in these texts. The opposing websites use a lot of blacks and grays to show disapproval and that weed is bad. The supporting websites are green to show support of marijuana since the plant is green and it is often referred to as green.
3. The rhetorical appeals being used in these texts are very similar to political ones. The opposing views use very blunt (no pun intended) words to show that marijuana is is bad and hurts people and not to believe the lies. The supporting sides show the facts and give a fair view of what is really happening.
I just created a veeeery long response to your post, which then got deleted (damn you wordpress!) and I don't have time to re-create the whole thing, I'm really sorry.
ReplyDeleteI think that all the things you've mentioned about focussing on audience and color use is a very good idea.
I took a look at www.marijuanaharmsfamilies.com and www.norml.org, and I think that you should have a look on how they both use alignment, proximity and organization. for instance I think it's quite clear that www.marijuanaharmsfamilies.com have chosen a very simplistic look, with a very specific organization of the elements as to "guide" the visitors of the site to click on certain things, in a specific order.
1. Considering your rhetorical situation, you may emphasize on audience, purpose, and context. Especially in context, you may want to make it clear and have deep understanding how marijuana is being used for medication.
ReplyDelete2. The first thing I notice is color. I can clearly see of the website is supporting or not just by looking at the color. It is because the opposing website is using black.
3. It seems like texts that you found have similarities in linguistic. It has very clear message in linguistic that can stand out the opposing side of marijuana.
Woo, fun topic! And I love that first multimodal text you have listed under organizations against Marijuana reform. Hilarious scare tactic.
ReplyDelete(1) So definitely focus on audience, purpose, and context, unless the author is shocking then there is probably no real need to focus on them, but that's my personal opinion. Audience plays a huge role, families, students, job owners. Purpose like I said earlier, scare-tactics are big, bringing in family dynamics to get sympathy, or even how younger people are explaining the other side and why (because the side against it isn't giving the whole story). And context is important because of issues like "in the work place" is completely theoretical since companies can legally fire people who smoke. There is an actual constitutional, legal, court case on it... had more to do with religion, but jobs have the right to fire who they want if it isn't religious discrimination but based on drugs. Very smart but usually overlooked!
(2) So other the other side of the issue is obviously taking a stand on legalizing marijuana. Particularly focusing on the color green and the leaf as a visual for those who go to the site. Hempfest isn't as decorative, kinda bland, but they have huge text in the header, so you might read it despite being pretty. It focuses more on alignment of the header and emphasis on the words than it does with color and contrast.
Norml and Just Say Now are very similar, both use green, both are aligned right to left, both use a similar organizational pattern of the header, menu bars, submenu bars, and the sequence of what you look at first. They could very well be the same site, only slightly different in how "clean" the framing of each section is.
The Yes on 64 is very direct with it's color and emphasis on Washington State. Still the same alignment as the other sides but is organized and framed very different and in a much simpler way. Probably most effective, especially in the state of Washington. Which can be contrasted with the Save California website since that relies on contrast of context and audience. As well as Save California went with a central alignment with the logo and a very dark grunge color, as if to relate it to death or jail.
And who can skip the calmca.com with their emphasis on children up at the top of the image, as if to say "marijuana smokers ruin these darling faces".
(3) So, what I really like as contrasts texts are the Save California, and Yes on 64 because they're two different states with two opposing ideas, and pretty much have different ways of displaying their information. Save California is clearly against, kind of frightening, and harsh to be exploring. While Yes on 64 is very open and kind of friendly, giving facts and reasons without trying to get rid of the people.
- Julie Harrison
1) I am doing a similar topic, and would advise you to make your audience obvious -- you mentioned how pro-marijuana reform websites are more geared towards the younger, more digitally literate generation as opposed to the anti-marijuana campaigns which are more appealing to parents and grandparents.
ReplyDelete2.) http://www.marijuanaharmsfamilies.com/ - This website uses a youtube video on autoplay to persuade visitors through different mediums (music/sound, moving visual imagery, typography).
http://www.calmca.org/ - this website features a header banner image of school children. Immediately appealing to parents/elderly. The main claim of the site is that marijuana reform affects children (negativel). However, their website texts are sectioned into larger blocks of text on the front page. Navigation is terrible, and organization makes most of the site less practical for us digital kids and more useful for older folks that are used to older website formats.
http://justsaynow.firedoglake.com/2012/09/14/2012-historic-year-for-marijuana-reform-on-the-ballot/ - This website presents its information in a well organized article that outlines the cause in each state with links to many sources of the claims presented.
3.) http://www.marijuanaharmsfamilies.com/ differs from the other websites I looked at because it does not have an immediately obvious navigation. The one-page appearance is likely used to relay the sum of it's purpose through the youtube video that autoplays upon visiting the site.