Chapter 37: The Public Argument
Public Argument: An Introduction
The previous chapter explained how to develop and write academic arguments. This chapter explores another type of argument, one that you likely experience each time you plug into mass media or any other technology intended to reach a mass audience. Public arguments are texts that engage public audiences and that add to a conversation involving multiple stakeholders, the people, businesses, or organizations with interests or concerns regarding the topic. Unlike debates that take place in intimate conversations between two individuals, small groups, or discourse communities, public arguments are created for the purpose of sharing with others via platforms like social media, community events, popular publications, podcasts, and other venues that reach wider audiences. Unlike formal academic arguments, public arguments are created to be shared beyond a classroom of students or a group of academics who share disciplinary expertise; public arguments engage average citizens and public stakeholder groups invested in a topic or issue. Take, for example, the Black Lives Matter protests.
In recent years, the killings of Black Americans at the hands of law enforcement have accentuated inequities within the U.S. criminal justice system, sparking movements calling for police accountability and reform. Organizations like Black Lives Matter serve to call attention to the injustices that Black Americans experience and to advocate for justice and liberation. In 2020, a series of events unfolded that incited national outcry in support of Black lives, including the death of George Floyd, whose confrontation with police officers was captured on camera and shared widely on social media and in news outlets. As a consequence of this and other similar cases, protests across the U.S. were held to demand justice and to argue for change.
In light of these events, which for many Americans highlight the precarity of Black lived experience, average citizens were taking action: They were calling and writing to state and local officials, signing petitions, attending protests, sharing information and resources on social media, and donating to causes. Yet there were also Americans who were counter-protesting: They challenged the idea of systemic racism, asserted that “all lives matter,” and defended the actions of police officers in these controversial moments. As might be expected, the tensions that arose within this time period created numerous opportunities for debate, discussion, and argument. And because many of these exchanges took place within public contexts, they resulted in the creation of various forms of public argument.
The stakeholders in this issue are many and diverse, including Black Americans, non-Black allies, law enforcement, government officials and representatives, national organizations like the NAACP, and media outlets—just to name a few. Each of these groups plays an important role in the con