Pennsylvania State University



Samuel KantnerENGL 137HRhetoric in the Red Cross Website10/16/12Unfortunately, our nation, as well as the rest of the world, faces a major blood shortage. One organization, the American Red Cross, helps to combat this blood shortage by attracting donors and volunteers. In order to get citizens to donate blood, the organization has to spread its name, and this challenge can be accomplished by creating a website. The website not only displays its cause but also serves as a good example of rhetoric. The purpose of the American Red Cross’s website seems apparent: to attract volunteers and donors to help those in need. Many associate the Red Cross with simple blood donations, but the mission statement on the website extends beyond that notion, stating “The American Red Cross prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.” (). Some pictures and links are larger than others, and thus it should be assumed the organization wants to place more emphasis on these enlarged photos and links. One must also pay attention to the location of such pictures and links. The website tries to attract donors and spread news of its cause by its use of pathos, ethos, logos, and placement of pictures and links on the homepage.The layout of the Red Cross website allows readers to understand which aspects the organization wishes to emphasize as well as its rhetorical choices. The slideshow of pictures at the center of the homepage exists to catch the reader’s attention. Directly above this slideshow features a row of links that the Red Cross seems to value as most important. The links can help readers identify the primary purposes of the Red Cross. One can infer that the website is targeted to people in any stage of adulthood. Though visually-appealing, the website will probably not interest children because of the absence of characters or fun activities to do on the site, which makes sense because anyone under the age of 16 cannot donate blood. The website contains a section of links to social networking sites so people can become connected to the Red Cross on their favorite websites. This important section allows others to spread the word about the American Red Cross and its cause. One might infer that the social media tab means the Red Cross values its young-adult donors. Perhaps this age group statistically lacks in donations and volunteerism, so the American Red Cross attempts to compensate for the lack by becoming connected to the favorite websites of younger adults. Over the past week, nothing noticeable about the website has changed, except for the “latest news” tab. The most-probable reason for the lack of change could be because the purpose of the Red Cross hasn’t changed, so the organization has not felt the need to constantly change the website. If the website deals with a recent tragedy (such as a recent flood in an impoverished area), then perhaps the website would change rapidly as new updates become available. The website seems to struggle with clearly showing all the causes of the Red Cross. The desire to attract blood donors appears to be the central focus of the homepage. In order to learn of the other causes of the Red Cross, one has to navigate the small links at the bottom of the page. Because it seems difficult to teach about other purposes of the Red Cross, the organization probably focuses most on collecting blood donations. The Red Cross may emphasize blood donations more than any other cause because the organization already has an adequate number of people involved with its other causes, but it needs people not involved with the Red Cross to volunteer to donate blood.The website attempts to garner support through emotional appeals. The middle of the homepage features a three-picture slideshow. One of these pictures includes the picture of a young girl with the caption “your online gift provides critical services to those in need.” The girl looks directly to the reader, as if telling the reader that his or her donation is critical to this young girl’s survival. The website also tries to emotionally engage the reader by featuring real-life stories from various people involved with the Red Cross. These stories allow readers to feel a special connection to the cause. Sure, hearing about a cause may entice some to become blood donors, but the personal accounts will give many an emotional connection, and may result in one’s increased desire to donate. On the bottom-right corner of the homepage, the website includes a picture of the Red Cross logo with the words “join the movement.” This movement refers to ways in which people can assist the Red Cross beyond the simple blood donation, such as by hosting a blood drive, fundraising, or volunteering for the organization. Some people may feel an enhanced personal connection to the Red Cross if they “join the movement.” These people might feel that, if they join the Red Cross, they will join a meaningful movement that heads toward an ultimate goal. Pathos seems to be the strongest rhetorical proof on the website.The website uses ethical appeals in order to attract donors. The homepage features the text “you can change someone’s life.” To some, this text may fulfill the notion that it is part of one’s civic duty to help others in need. The Red Cross’s logo may clue readers into the purpose of the organization. The logo, a red “plus” symbol, looks very similar to the symbol one would associate with a hospital or first aid kit. In this manner, if one sees the logo without knowing any information about the company, he or she can infer the organization deals with health-related issues. This logo, though, can also represent the vast history of the organization, dating back to the 1880s. (). The Red Cross uses ethos in its website by including the logo and the title “American Red Cross” at the top of the homepage. Since the organization has been in existence for a long time, it has a great deal of credibility and recognition. The Red Cross seems to basically assume the reader is already familiar with the organization, further showing the organization’s level of credibility. In order to attract potential donors, the Red Cross website also uses logical appeals. The top of the homepage features a link titled “What We Do.” This link clearly details all the aspects of the organization and explains what the blood donations do. The homepage also features a large picture with a link to learn more. This link takes the reader to a page that explains how to donate, host a blood drive, volunteer in a drive, and how to recruit others. The website, to an extent, hides the fact that the Red Cross performs many extra duties besides collecting blood donations. The organization deals with disaster relief, support of military families, and health and safety education. The Red Cross, by featuring the tab at the top of the homepage titled “Take a Class,” attempts to attract people to learn valuable skills such as lifeguarding, CPR, or emergency response. The Red Cross uses logos by explaining that these skills are very valuable, and, by becoming involved in the organization, one can learn these important skills. The website does not provide too many statistics about the organization, possibly because the organization feels as though it would rather focus on appealing to the public emotionally and ethically. The website does contain, though, an ample amount of information on the history of the organization as well as everything it does. The website creates a problem with its layout: the “branding” of the organization as being solely focused on collecting blood donations. Many do not realize the Red Cross also deals with disaster relief, veteran care, and health and safety education, and the website does a rather poor job at showing everyone the organization’s other involvements. These purposes are, of course, mentioned on the website, but one has to scroll to the links at the bottom of the page to discover them.The American Red Cross helps abate our global blood shortage by collecting blood from donors and giving this blood to the needy. In order to attract donors, the organization needs to be able to spread its name. The organization’s website allows it not only to explain its cause, but also to show its rhetorical proofs. The purpose of the website is to get people to donate blood and/or to help the Red Cross in any other way possible. The website goes about this cause by detailing its most important links at the top of the homepage and including a slideshow of large pictures to help catch the audience’s attention. More links appear at the bottom of the page so people can learn more about the organization or ways in which they can involve others. As technology advances and internet dependence increases, charitable organizations such as the American Red Cross have to be able to keep up with this demand. The website, though, could use some improvements. There are too many links on the homepage, thus resulting in a possible “information overload” for some readers. Website visitors have much less patience today than in previous years, so the website needs to be extremely user-friendly and not feature too much information on the homepage. However, the website doesn’t seem to have a very high ease of use, featuring an excessive amount of links at the bottom of the page. Though the American Red Cross is an old organization, it must be able to keep up with the demands of the public. For the organization to influence more to join, it needs to create a more user-friendly website that appeals to younger adults and does not have an exorbitant amount of links at the bottom of the page. Though some improvements may be needed, the website does an effective job of using logical, emotional, and ethical appeals to display its cause in a well-organized manner. Works Cited"Mission, Vision, and Fundamental Principles."?. The American Red Cross, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2012. <;."Our History."?. The American Red Cross, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2012. <. The American Red Cross, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2012. <; ................
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