The Ethic of Expediency

In Steven Katz’s “The Ethic of Expediency” Katz establishes early on that the Nazi memo, although morally shocking and seemingly cold, was “technically accurate and logically argued” (257). The memo discusses a problem inherent in technical writing that doesn’t seem apparent—ethics. Most industries and disciplines come with an ethical questions, but many are much more apparent. Medicine, academics, finance, all have an ethical question that is on the surface and the answer is always found or taught in the initial entrance into the field. Although some struggle to be ethically correct, there has never been a question of whether or not there is an ethical question. Because technical writing works with data sometimes from other fields, the ethical question is not always at the forefront.

One of the main tenets of Katz's article is that rhetoric should not only be concerned with end result but the way we arrive at the end. This relates to Quintilian's 'good man speaking well' and just about every other classic orator. Plato thoroughly discussed the pitfalls of rhetoric comparing it to drugs and a powerful lord among other things. Rhetoric can and has been used inappropriately, and that is why Katz's article is important to the field of technical communication and students learning the field.

I enjoy history and have always been interested in World War II. My Grandfather served in the navy and I grew up hearing his stories and watching documentaries. Just's memo is an example of the mind set of the Nazis during that time. Although they were concerned with the perfect race they neglected the aspect of humanity and committed the most unethical acts. The ethos and persuasion established by Hitler created a social situation that furthered the unethical acts and mindset. Technical writers should not be devoid of ethics or the sense of humanity when conveying technical data. There is always an ethical situation in every piece of communication produced.

Ethics

Huff's article about statistics points out a very important fact about statistics, "You can prove anything you want to by letting your sample bias itself" (362). Statistics can be biased in a number of ways. When I was on the Intercollegiate Debate Team we used a lot of statistics to prove our case. Many times we could call out the other team because of their use of statistics. Sometimes reading the very next line would show that the statistics were meant the opposite way they were being used. Ethics calls for fair use of the numbers in relation to the subject.

In Dan Jones' article on he says, "It seems as though almost everyone is concerned about ethics in one way or another" (371). To me this is the Golden Rule--do unto others as you would have them do to you--no one wants to be tricked or swindle. Everyone wants to be treated fairly and honestly. The Golden Rule could be altered to say--be ethical to others as you would want them to be ethical to you.

Social constructions fascinate me; the thought that ideas and beliefs are built and guided by a society is an interesting study. In Carolyn D. Rude's article Legal and Ethical Issues in Editing, she states, "They [ethics] derive from cultural values of right and wrong" (374). Society dictates what is ethical and what is not. We guide our writing and editing based upon what society tells us is okay. Plagarism is wrong because society has told us it is--it's wrong to take credit for someone else's work and study. But society has even directed us to the correct usage of materials on the web. Even this fair new source of work and study has a socially constructed set of rights and wrongs.

Technology Preview

The multimedia part of my project is a website for the Writing Center. Because it is for the University there are several guidelines and hoops to jump through. Mrs. Ramirez, the director of the Writing Center has been working on setting up the website for me to do the work. Since this is a one-time thing, I will be working with Stephanie since she works in the MATRF and has the cascade permission. Currently Mrs Rameriz is reviewing a draft of the content for the website and as soon as we get that nailed down I can begin to work with Stephanie on the implementation phase.

One aspect of this is the adherence to the visual standards of the University.
http://www.clemson.edu/guidelines/index.html

Websites-
http://www.clemson.edu/guidelines/web.html

This includes logo and wordmark usage-
http://www.clemson.edu/guidelines/download/index.html

And fonts and color choice-
http://www.clemson.edu/guidelines/type.html
http://www.clemson.edu/guidelines/colors.html


Example with correct colors-

Just a Few Things About Cover Letters

Steven Graber specifically states on page 309, "The idea of the cover letter is not to repeat what's in the resume. The idea is to give an overview if your capabilities." The cover letter is another way to advertise any abilities. I have never used a cover letter until recently. It's hard to boil yourself down to just one page, but the cover letter adds another way to show a potential employer what you're like and what you can do.

On page 312 in the section titled "Proof with Care" the very last line states, "If you find mistakes, do not fix them with pen, pencil, or white out! Make the changes on the computer and print out the letter with care." I have found that some people in business try to take the easy way out. You have to beg them to change it on the computer and reprint it. Employers appreciate professional documents that are created with care. They do not want to hire someone who will take the easy way out. There's enough of that surrounding them already.

Although I haven't witnessed it yet, the best way to get a job is to tailor all correspondence to each job application. Showing that the position is understood and that you have the specific qualifications for which the company is asking is the best way to get the resume noticed by the hiring manager. I've started thinking of it as an interview before the interview. They look at the cover letter and resume and most likely do a mental checklist. If you pass you get an interview; if you fail to answer all the questions well then you fail and get passed over.