Month: August 2023

In the Keywords chapter “Trust” an important question was proposed. 

When speaking to an audience, how do you get them to believe what you’re saying?

In the article, the answer to this question was to use Aristotle’s tactics of rhetoric- logos, pathos, and ethos; strategic writing and speaking practices that are designed to evoke emotion, trust, and connection in an audience. When applying this assessment to my own life, I reflected on the use of pathos- the rhetorical use of emotion- in one particularly well-done speech during my high school graduation. 

My graduation ceremony experience was an overwhelming day of pent up expectations, stress, and way too many flash pictures. Looking around me at the sea of my peers dressed in their monochromatic graduation gowns, and then looking upwards to see all of their respective family members peering down from the seating above, I vividly recall the increasing pressure to take in every second of this once-in-a-lifetime moment. The loud orchestral music playing and the bead of sweat dripping from my graduation cap all caused me to feel disoriented.

The school shuffled through its initial few speakers, a few of those including the superintendent, a couple school board members, and the principal. Despite all of these speeches being well written, and filled with endearing words of congratulations- I still struggled to connect, despite my efforts to feel sentimental. As soon as Lawrence Liu, the designated class speaker, stood up to the podium- my mood instantly changed due to his impactful use of pathos techniques off the bat. 

In the Keywords article, a factor of effective pathos includes the assessment of an audience. A speaker must understand the emotional state of its audience members, and then analyze how to convey their words in a manner that appeals to this general mood. As a student, Lawrence clearly realized that his peers were getting slightly tired of the recycled and generic speeches, and he approached the microphone with a large smile, kickstarting his speech with hilarious shoutouts to notorious members of our graduating class, bringing initial humor and lightheartedness to his delivery. 

A second key takeaway from “Trust” was that audience members are much more likely to connect to a speaker’s emotion if they genuinely believe the speaker feels that emotion as well. Lawrence quickly established a deep emotional connection with the audience after his few funny opening lines. Continuing with his theme of name dropping well known people around the district, Lawrence began to tear up as he thoughtfully delivered thank-yous to teachers who had an impact on him. Seeing the genuine emotion in Lawrence’s face, paired with his slow and meaningful delivery of his appreciative words, brought me to reality. Especially after Lawrence emphatically praised the AP Government teacher who had helped so many students, including myself, during a stressful senior year- I found myself crying just as much as him. Looking around the audience, I was awestruck to see both football players and chess team champions all masking teary eyes.

In conclusion, through the use of appropriately assessing an audience’s emotions, and then artfully responding in an appealing way, Lawrence was able to captivate an audience of shifty and emotional teens, and truly connect with them. I think I can speak for every senior in the audience- Lawrence’s speech was unforgettable. His well tailored delivery impacted every student in the audience, and was the best example of pathos I had ever encountered. 

One of the long-standing pillars of American democracy is the concept of civic duty. In simple terms, civic duty is the responsibility to engage with the government of your community. The key problem with this obligation is that there is a large gap in political efficacy and civic participation across class levels in America, as low-class citizens often have the fewest opportunities to easily engage in government, whilst higher-class citizens can affect legislature with almost too much ease. 

A recent development in the field of artificial intelligence- the use of AI technology to replace human lobbyists within special interest groups- has the possibility of completely shifting this existing gap in participation; for the better and the worse. I believe that this new tool in the toolhouse of political activism can potentially serve as a revitalization to the American democratic process, while potentially also causing an uproar of distrust in the government to an extent never seen before.

Looking at the potential positive effects of this technology, AI can be a tool that evens the playing field between highly regarded politicians and regular citizens with a concern for politics by aiding grassroots efforts and smaller special interest groups that are having trouble gaining traction. AI can help these groups have access to data analytics and predictive analysis without the burden of having to pay a highly educated individual to advise them on their political strategy. This is cost-effective and efficient, and could potentially glamorize the idea of engaging in politics to people who may have been previously disgruntled by the corrupt nature of politics in the US. 

As exciting as it is to imagine a country where citizens feel inspired and able to engage in government, AI technology may potentially only make getting involved in the political process even harder than it already is. 

Lobbying relies on a revolving door of highly valued and educated politicians moving between bureaucratic agencies or Congress into special interest groups and well-funded political action committees. What’s more likely than a group of politically conscious citizens utilizing AI to strategically save money and advocate for a good cause, is the experienced legislators now working for private industries becoming unstoppable by using programming and hacking to manipulate political decisions with unprecedented agility. 

With this potential rise in non-human involvement in the democratic process, citizens may likely lose even more faith in the American political system, and the gap in political efficacy may be drastically widened. Potentially if AI technology were to end up only benefitting the already massively powerful special interest groups, it is inevitable that discouraged and underrepresented citizens will become only further disillusioned with the principles of American democracy. This growth in influence and power that comes with the accuracy and agility of AI technology may villainize the lobbyists and bureaucrats within the national government, and distance them further away from the average American.

Ultimately, the use of artificial intelligence in the field of lobbying holds potential promise for a glimmering future of ethical legislature and widespread civic engagement, while also risking an erosion of trust in government and a widened divide of citizens of different economic status.