Negative Ethos?

Many speakers rely on ethos to help aid their rhetorical analysis. Their ability to come across as credible to an audience is undoubtably part of effective speech. If the speaker does not seem credible, then why would an audience want to listen? Because of this, I cannot help but wonder what would happen when a speaker lacks ethos.

When considering this issue, my thoughts immediately turn to Sarah Palin. As John McCain’s running mate in the 2008 Presidential Elections, Palin’s ability to effectively use rhetoric, or seemingly lack thereof, was often criticized. She became known for misspeaking and having unclear answers. For example, in a series of interviews with Katie Couric which aired on CBS on September 24 and 25, 2008, Palin was asked to clarify her foreign-policy experience based on her claims that she has benefited through the proximity of Alaska and Russia. Palin replied:                   

                 "That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and on our other side, the land boundary that we have with — Canada. It, it’s funny that a comment like that was — kind of made to cari — I don’t know. You know. Reporters —"

Listening to this answer, I found myself confused and doubtful her abilities in both foreign policy and simply in speaking. Her credibility was also hurt as she was often parodied on skits from Saturday Night Live, which emphasized the confusion that Palin displayed when responding to questions. Now, when I hear Palin speak, I cannot help but to think of the Tina Fey renditions of her speeches and interviews. I even think of these parodies perhaps more often then the authentic responses. This certainly does not help Palin’s ethos, as it only stresses the questions about her ability to give accurate and understandable answers and simply confuses her audiences with an entirely different individual and goal.

Admittedly, Palin has worked to move forward and to develop her style. After all, Palin is a major political personality and a potential Presidential candidate for the 2012 election. Likewise, it should be noted that Palin’s followers may be unconcerned with the SNL skits and believe that she was portrayed too negatively by the press. Nevertheless, I believe that she is still actively working to overcome the rhetorical errors that she made during the 2008 election campaign and that she must continue to establish a positive ethos with the entire American audience.


Clip from Katie Couric's Interview with Sarah Palin. 
Originally aired on CBS on September 24 and 25, 2008.
Video courtesy of YouTube

Clip from Saturday Night Live on NBC
Originally aired on September 27, 2008
Foreign Policy is addressed from 2:43-3:40
Video courtesy of Hulu