Analysts of Lobbyist
Pat Whittinghill
Rhetorical Analysis In his article, Waiting for the Next Watergate, Byron Tau uses multiple rhetorical strategies to argue that campaign finance reform needs to occur now, rather than wait until a major scandal forces the hand of congress. Tau relies heavily on ethos and logos to make his points resonate with his readers.
Ethos is essentially an author’s credibility. Without ethos readers have no way of knowing an author’s qualifications in a topic and why they should pay attention to what they have to say. It can be made up of who the author is, their prior work, who they write for, or their experience in the field they are writing about.
Byron Tau’s ethos comes from all these aspects. First off, he is writing for Politico, a highly respected news source covering politics exclusively. It is widely read by congressmen, their aides, lobbyists, educated voters, and others working on and around the hill. To highlight this,
Politico is distributed daily to every congressional office. This reputation instantly gives Tau both credibility and a large audience including readers in positions of power. Having these advantages gives an author the ability to possibly influence policy if he or she can make a strong enough point. Also Tau has a bachelor’s degree from Mcgill University and a Masters of Journalism from Georgetown University. These Universities are highly respected and have a long list of notable Alumni who have worked in journalism.
Another important part of ethos is an author’s prior work. Byron Tau is exceptional in this category. His prior work includes articles in Roll Call, The National Journal, The New
Republic, AOL News, Politics Daily, and The Washington City Paper. Among these, Roll Call and Politics Daily share the same prestige and readership as Politico and therefore add to
Tau’s prestige as a political journalist. These are all reputable sources and give Tau
legitimacy in his writing. Also he has spent
Rhetorical Analysis In his article, Waiting for the Next Watergate, Byron Tau uses multiple rhetorical strategies to argue that campaign finance reform needs to occur now, rather than wait until a major scandal forces the hand of congress. Tau relies heavily on ethos and logos to make his points resonate with his readers.
Ethos is essentially an author’s credibility. Without ethos readers have no way of knowing an author’s qualifications in a topic and why they should pay attention to what they have to say. It can be made up of who the author is, their prior work, who they write for, or their experience in the field they are writing about.
Byron Tau’s ethos comes from all these aspects. First off, he is writing for Politico, a highly respected news source covering politics exclusively. It is widely read by congressmen, their aides, lobbyists, educated voters, and others working on and around the hill. To highlight this,
Politico is distributed daily to every congressional office. This reputation instantly gives Tau both credibility and a large audience including readers in positions of power. Having these advantages gives an author the ability to possibly influence policy if he or she can make a strong enough point. Also Tau has a bachelor’s degree from Mcgill University and a Masters of Journalism from Georgetown University. These Universities are highly respected and have a long list of notable Alumni who have worked in journalism.
Another important part of ethos is an author’s prior work. Byron Tau is exceptional in this category. His prior work includes articles in Roll Call, The National Journal, The New
Republic, AOL News, Politics Daily, and The Washington City Paper. Among these, Roll Call and Politics Daily share the same prestige and readership as Politico and therefore add to
Tau’s prestige as a political journalist. These are all reputable sources and give Tau
legitimacy in his writing. Also he has spent