Introduction
When signing up for the course my junior year, I was still an undeclared major. I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do yet, and therefore was hesitant on taking a class called digital rhetoric. I had thoughts about going into professional writing, and digital rhetoric was a part of that curriculum. While reading the course description for the class, I assumed prior coding knowledge was mandatory in order to participate in the assignments and projects. During the first day of the spring semester, I was reluctant to find out this was not the case. Even though I initially enrolled in the course just to fulfill the media requirement, I am now glad I decided to keep it on my schedule. Unlike other courses I have taken thus far, digital rhetoric grounds itself in real life scenarios. In other words, the course dives into situations one might find themselves in while working in a professional writing environment. Whether it be working in the field of journalism, or conducting movie reviews for the entertainment industry, the act of digital rhetoric should always be considered while writing articles or other forms of media.
Why Visuals Matter – What to Think About Before Taking the Class
During the first day of the course, we were shown a website for a local movie theater chain. To put it lightly, the website was mediocre, looking like it was made in the early 90s. The reason why we were shown this example was to get us thinking about how a site’s structure effects the overall visitor experience. It’s not just words that matter, but the visuals and design layout that tie the site together. A site needs practical visuals that grab the readers attention. Something that signifies what the topic is about before actually reading the content. When people come across giant walls of text, they instantly check out, and move onto the next thing. The importance of inserting visuals within an article is astronomical, and therefore should not be overlooked. Being able to have visuals is one of the great benefits of writing digitally and should be used accordingly. The importance of visuals is one of my biggest takeaways from the course so far, as I believe it is the most useful when discussing digital rhetoric. What I would recommend for incoming students is to look at articles posted around social media sites such as Twitter and see how they are laid out. Doing this will train your brain to look for different types of media, and therefore have an idea as to why they are there in the first place.
I want to go ahead and give an example of the impact of visuals, as this is how I learn best. During the time of writing this guide, one major headline is circulating Twitter. This would be the deadly coronavirus that is taking the world by storm. Almost every news outlet imaginable has the cover photo being people wearing flue masks. The photo below impacts the reader in two major ways.
For one, it creates mood, conjuring up an eerie atmosphere to go along with the related subject matter. The second is the establishment of severity and awareness. How often do you see a couple walking down the street with masks? Why is an outside mall so barren? The visual makes the reader say “Hey, somethings not quite right here. Maybe I should check it out and see what’s going on”. I can’t express enough the importance of digital rhetoric when discussing fields like journalism, as it can make or break a story’s success.
Working with WordPress
Prior to going into the course, I had no experience using WordPress before. Being completely honest, I was overwhelmed at first with all the different themes and customizations one could do within the site. After some much-needed trial and error, I would say I got a decent grasp at how WordPress works. I was surprised how user friendly the program was and would recommend it to someone who is wanting to learn how to design a website.
Reading Takeaways
Over the past few weeks of the course, we were assigned various readings pertaining to digital rhetoric. Some of the readings raised valid arguments as to the importance of teaching digital rhetoric in a classroom environment. By clicking the “Blog Feed” link up at the very top, you will be redirected to my quick synopsizes of each reading in hopes to give some clarity for incoming students. I also included some videos that have good synergy with the readings to help grasp the information better. To go back to this page, simply click “The Guide” link.
The Guide 