The critical role of standard technical communication at the local community level: A case study from an Isocratean perspective

Abstract

The study examines a recent case of communication in a technical field at the local level. Attention is focused on an expert acting to inform two different audiences, professional and lay, about a significant development in an area in which they have a vital interest. An analysis of the rhetorical strategy used by the communicator reveals an unimaginative but apparently sound procedure chosen by him. The investigation, relying in large part on Isocratean concepts, makes judgments regarding the key role of rhetoric at the local community level.

Notes

Jeffrey A. Nelson (Ph. D., University of Michigan) is Associate Professor of Communication Studies at Kent State University‐Trumbull, 4314 Mahoning Avenue Northwest, Warren, Ohio 44483‐1998 ([email protected]). He has published articles in Communication Education, The Review of Communication, and Critical Studies in Mass Communication. William H. Ostrowski (B.S./B.A., Youngstown State University) is Assistant Professor of Accounting Technology at Kent State University. A certified public accountant, he also maintains a private practice in accounting, primarily dealing with tax‐related matters