Abstract

Abstract We argue that part of Rhetoric & Public Affairs’ future should center public-facing scholarship in rhetorical studies. We begin by chronicling some of the work colleagues are doing to bridge expert and lay publics: podcasts, popular and trade press interviews, social media content development and management, and activist engagements. Centering public-facing scholarship creates several notable shifts: (1) it changes the “so what?” for traditional scholarship by inviting scholars to think about audiences outside of journal readership; (2) it opens space for different stylistic conventions in scholarly writing; and (3) it indicates that nonexpert audiences are valuable as readers. We note the considerable barriers to entry to public scholarship including gatekeeping, framing public scholarship for tenure, and training. We contend that Rhetoric & Public Affairs could lead other journals through an updated definition of impact that takes into account contemporary modes of circulation and sharing, should accept pieces written for nonexpert readers in rhetoric, and should consider, if possible, making available for public reading one scholarly article every month or every quarter.

Journal
Rhetoric & Public Affairs
Published
2021-03-01
DOI
10.14321/rhetpublaffa.24.1-2.0379
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References (26) · 1 in this index

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  2. 2. “NAS 2020 Awards Ceremony,” undated and unlisted video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkSfD4bq_i8&featur…
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Show all 26 →
  1. Thomas K. Nakayama, "Whiteness Is Not Contained," Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies 17 (2020): 199-201.
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  3. Poroi
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  5. 9. Some examples include Susan Milligan, “A Very Trump Response,” U.S. News and World Report, April 10, 2020,…
  6. 10. Rachel Alicia Griffin has given workshops on gender-based violence around the country including at Lehigh…
  7. 11. Some examples include Amber Johnson’s Justice Fleet, a mobile social justice organization that fosters “h…
  8. 12. Examples include Cara Finnegan’s “Reading the Pictures,” https://www.readingthepictures.org/author/cara-f…
  9. 13. Examples include Jennifer Mercieca’s Twitter feed in which she instructs thousands of followers on Trump’…
  10. 14. Michael Burowoy, “To Advance, Sociology Must Not Retreat,” Chronicle of Higher Education, August 13, 2004…
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  16. Quarterly Journal of Speech 105, no. 4 (2019) had a special forum edited by Darrel Wanzer-Serrano on #Rhetori…
  17. 20. Reshmi Dutt-Ballerstadt, “Inside Higher Ed: What to Do When You Are an Academic under Attack by Right-Win…
  18. 21. According to Scimago rankings, R&PA’s h-value is at the bottom of top-tier rhetoric journals with an h-va…
  19. 22. Thomas K. Nakayama and Robert L. Krizek, “Whiteness: A Strategic Rhetoric,” Quarterly Journal of Speech 8…
  20. 23. The authors would like to thank Professor Lisa Corrigan for her candid comments.
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