Rhetoric and Argumentation

1. What is media ecology? How does it relate to the study of rhetoric? What is the primary argument offered by this perspective?

Ecology, the science that studies the complex relations between living organism and environment, has documented the impact of the growth of human population and the Industrial Revolution on various ecosystems. This knowledge has led to philosophical and ethical discussions about man's role and responsibility to other life on Earth. Political and economic systems as well as their underlying values come to the forefront when impacts of capitalism, communism, democracy, socialism, and fascism are examined using moral reasoning.

Media ecology is best understood as an approach, rather than a strict ideology, to understanding the media as environments. Central to media ecology is the idea that media environments, such as books, radio, film, television, and the like, involve subtle, implicit, and informal dynamics and complex message systems; because people do not often think of these media forms as environments, as they would a courtroom, classroom, or workplace, they are usually not aware of their effects. Media ecology attempts to illuminate the impact these media have on people at numerous levels. Media ecology is concerned with the contents and uses of various media as well as with the relationships between people, places, technology, and events. Thus, it also creates a link to the study of rhetoric.

Rhetoric may be defined as persuasive communication, written or oral, formal or informal; a verbal art or a type of poetics; or an academic discipline concerned with persuasive communication. In his seminal work, Rhetoric, Aristotle provided the original, neutral definition of the concept as simply “the available means of persuasion.” The content and style of one's rhetoric can help to convey to others information about one's politics, geographic region, nationality, race, socioeconomic status, age, religion, ...