Reading Review

After reviewing the readings a couple concepts stood out that could really influence my project. One reading in particular which was Chapter 9 of our Risk Communication book entitled

"Develop Your Message" struck me to be very useful. Sometimes I believe it is hard to distinguish between what your audience wants to hear and what you want them to hear. This is the section with the awful bubble charts that we talked about in class and although they seem confusing I believe that if they were organized better they could really help the risk communicator communicate the message to their audience. My biggest problem when it comes to writing is thinking things through before just typing away. I believe that these charts would really help give the audience the information that they want. The sample message maps really give you a direction to take when wishing to inform an audience. Supporting facts are something that I have a problem with. I assume that since I know something my audience does which is a huge problem when you are trying to communicate risk to someone.

The other reading that I reviewed that I believe could and has really impacted my project is the piece by Melody Rowden and J. Blake Scott entitled "A Rhetorical Toolbox for Technical and Professional Communication." I realize we are supposed to be specific but I really do think the majority of this piece provided great checklists and questions for the risk communicator to ask themselves before relaying the message to the audience. The invention questions on page 38 are really helpful when you are just beginning a piece. As young adults we were trained to write for a grade. By this I mean that all through highschool I wrote for my teacher I knew what the liked and what they wanted to hear so I did what I had to to receive an A. In the "real world" you are not writing for a grade but for a purpose this is a hard transition to make. That is why this class is so helpful on many different levels because it is beginning to make me aware of the audience and just how important they are.