Zach Aaronson

Writing 2, DePiero
February 22, 2016

Is Academic Writing More Effective Than Non Academic Writing?

When writing one has a choice of what genre to write in. While this may seem
like a small step it is actually the first major step in the writing process. By choosing a
genre one does not only choose whether they are writing a nonfiction or a fiction work,
but one decides whether to write formally or informally; to address the reader as you
or one; to use citations to back up claims or to simply state facts without citations; and
more. Every piece of writing fits within a genre; it has its own moves, its own purpose,
presents evidence in its own way, addresses its audience in its own way, and is
structured uniquely. Yet, set aside these differences and works from two or even three
unrelated genres can all be presenting information on the same topic, but with a slightly
different focus. The way to break down genre is by looking at what conscious decisions
one can identify what it is the writer is trying to accomplish and how the reader
interprets that information and style choice(s). The real question is: does an academic
piece accomplish anything that a non-academic piece cannot?
I am going to break down these aspects and show what it is that creates genre
by examining three articles that cover a similar topic, two from academic journals and
one from The Washington Post. The first article, titled Exploring Intercultural
Communication: Language in Action Book Review, is an analysis of a book by the same
title (without the added book review of course). The analysis is written in a
communication publication and is about how language affects intercultural

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communication. The second article is titled Promoting Cross-Cultural Understanding

and Language Use in Research-Oriented Internet-Mediated Intercultural Exchange,
comes from a geography journal and is an empirical study on how cultures that are
geographically separated perceive each other and themselves. The third article comes
from The Washington Post and is titled How Airbnb Promotes World Peace is about
how the service Airbnb brings together people from different cultures and in doing so
eliminates cultural bias. While these articles cover the same topic, intercultural
interactions, they each do it differently and some more effectively than others.
One of the easiest aspects to pick out in a genre are moves. What is a move?
Well, that was a move (asking the reader a question), anything that is unique to a writer
or a genre is a move. A move can be anything from how a writer move[s] from one idea
to another (Boyd, 90) to the way the author uses language to describe ideas. In
academic writing there tends to be much overlap between the moves of writers. In the
article that analyzes a book on intercultural communication the writer uses many jargon
terms such as, conversational conscription, gap between turns, or face (this term
does not mean ones physical face) (Hua, 135-136). The other academic article makes
use of jargon as well, for example, the globalized world, intercultural dimensions, or
intercultural collaborative learning are all jargons within the subject of the abstract
(Chen, Yang, 262-265). In an academic article such as these two, one would use jargon
to sound more in-tune with the subject because these jargons tend to not be used in
daily life and only in situations in which one is interacting with other scholars of the
subject. The use of jargon is effective in persuading the reader because it makes it
seem as if the writer(s) are more knowledgeable of the subject matter; jargon is not

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heavily used in The Wall Street Journal article as it is in the other two articles which
makes it less persuasive.
In the article from The Washington Post about how Airbnb promotes world
peace the author uses an attention grabbing title and backup research to snag the
readers attention and hold onto it. This attention grabbing title is effective for the genre
of a news article because unlike the academic articles readers are reading because
they think the title or main picture is interesting rather than the actual subject matter.
The title of the article is in fact How Airbnb Promotes World Peace which is a very
interesting choice of words since Airbnb is a house rental service which most people do
not normally associate with spreading a message of peace. To back up this idea the
author uses research from psychologists about the leading social psychology theory on
how different groups of people relate to each other (Hua, 1). By using psychological
research the author is giving validity to her claims that Airbnb promotes world peace
much in the same way that the author of the communication article uses analysis of a
book to prove his point; or how the authors of the geography abstract use empirical data
to test their claims. This move could be labeled as giving ones argument viability and is
an enticement to logos which is defined as appeals to the audiences intellectual side
(Carroll, 44). Although all these articles use evidence with the same intentions, to
persuade or inform the reader, they do that in different ways and this is due to difference
in genre and purpose. While an attention grabbing title is effective in attracting a
readers eye, perhaps it is better to use jargon terms within the article to establish
credibility if one is attempting to convince readers. In the rhetoric of moves the
academic journals are more effective because they demonstrate a deep understanding

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of the subject whereas the writer of The Washington Post article has to rely on other
conventions to exhibit credibility, which the author does by bringing in outside sources
for backup.
Genre can range anywhere from an empirical study to a news article. Genre is
normally determined by purpose, for example an analysis of a book is meant to relay
information in a simpler manner, an empirical study is meant to test a hypothesis, and a
news article in The Washington Post is meant to persuade. There are multiple ways to
accomplish each of these purposes effectively and that is what moves are for. This is
because writers think how their writing choices are influencing responses [of] a
reader and make choices that will effectively display the message they have to their
reader (Bunn, 81). Authors purpose is likely the most important active choice one can
make as a writer. It will determine whether the language is academic, such as the
communication analysis and the geography abstract, or informal in the same manner as
the article from The Washington Post. Each of these writers has a different purpose and
goes about accomplishing that using their own moves and the conventions that fit the
genre that fits the purpose. When one is attempting to persuade a reader - something
each of these articles is attempting to accomplish - it is likely much more effective to use
an academic and formal tone like the communication analysis and geography abstract
than to use an informal tone and language such as in The Washington Post article, but
that informal tone can also be seen as easier to read for someone who is not well read
in the subject.
The purpose of a work is often determined by the intended audience. For
instance, the communication analysis is probably expected to be read by a student

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looking for a short analysis of a book on intercultural communication; the geography

abstract is no doubt written for a student or scholar who wants or needs to learn about
how certain cultures interact with new cultures whom they are geographically separated
from; and The Washington Post article is in all likelihood written for the common peruser
of the website or paper publication that is intrigued by the article title. One can normally
tell purpose by the rhetoric a writer employs, the purpose of a piece of rhetoric, helps
you understand what the rhetor is trying to achieve such as how one can tell The Wall
Street Journal article is attempting to persuade by its use of exaggeration (Carroll, 44).
The way this is seen in the two research journal publications is through the analytical
description of the communication book, which has no fluff and is simply a short analysis
and commentary on the book followed by a chapter-by-chapter analysis as seen by the
Chapter 1 delves Chapter 2 scrutinizes Chapter 3 looks at (Hua, 135-136). In
the geography abstract the purpose can be seen through its structure starting with the
abstract, moving on to the introduction, then to the methodology, and so on which
establishes a formal tone which achieves the purpose of purely informing (Chen, Yang,
262-266). The author of The Washington Post article was attempting to persuade and
accomplishes this through exaggeration, which she actually acknowledges at the end
when she says nobody gets the [Nobel] peace prize for not hurting (Dewey, 1). Each
of the writers has a different purpose and goes about fulfilling that purpose in their own
way whether it be through jargon, format, or tone. Each of those uses of rhetoric has a
different effect on how the reader is persuaded. Jargon and the format of the geography
abstract and communication analysis are undoubtedly more persuasive than the casual

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format and tone of The Washington Post Article for their intended audiences. While an
informal tone is more effective for The Washington Posts intended audience.
If the differences hadnt added up enough already, each piece uses evidence in
different ways. In the communication analysis the author does not use a single
quotation to support her argument or analysis, which is not the greatest idea when one
is trying to persuade. The author uses citations clearly, but only to show where he has
pulled information from the book and put it into his own words. The geography abstract
presents its information in a very different manner. The authors obviously made a
conscious effort to present clear examples of their evidence in any way possible, not
only by including questions that they asked participants of the research like, Do you
have any taboos in your culture? What are they? What do they mean? then goes on to
tell not only what the participants answers were, but how they got to those answers.
Through deep research, by collecting information, interviewing, analyzing
and negotiating, classes submitted answers to their partners questions on
the Wiki. Simultaneously, classes also received answers to their questions
from the other classes (Chen, Yang, 269).
The author of The Washington Post article presents her evidence in yet another
manner. She uses both paraphrasing like the communication article as well as direct
quotes from her sources. She mixes these two forms of presenting evidence best when
she paraphrases and quotes within the same sentence, for example, That theory,
intergroup contact, basically holds that prejudices between groups go down as
interactions between them go up (Dewey, 1). In this instance the author is using
paraphrasing to describe a directly quoted jargon that most people would not

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understand without her explanation. This is actually a move in itself which which is
labeled as making what they say something you say, the author is making a quote fit
her argument (Graff, Durst, 107). The geography abstract and The Wall Street Journals
presentation of evidence is more effective than the communication analysis because the
reader can more easily tell where that information is coming from and more readily trust
the writer(s).
In conclusion, there are many effective ways to present an argument to a reader.
Some approaches are better than others and what determines that is normally the
presentation of evidence and tone as well as how persuasive the writing itself is.
Academic writing tends to be more persuasive than non-academic writing simply
because more often than not academic writing uses more valid sources and most of the
time backs them up with research. Whereas a non-academic article may be better at
reaching the general public and giving a brief overview for those who might then turn to
an academic journal to learn more on a subject. In a sense academic writing is more
effective in teaching and persuading, but non-academic writing is more effective at
reaching a vast number of people because it tends to be much more accessible.

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Works Cited
Boyd, Janet. "Murder! (Rhetorically Speaking)." (n.d.): n. pag. Rpt. in Writing 2
Winter 2016 Reader. Isla Vista: SB Printer, 2016. 63-95. Print.
Bunn, Mike. "How to Read Like A Writer." (n.d.): n. pag. Rpt. in Writing 2 Winter
2016 Reader. Isla Vista: SB Printer, 2016. 80-95. Print.
Carroll, Laura Bolin. "Backpack vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical
Analysis." (n.d.): n. pag. Rpt. in Writing 2 Winter 2016 Reader. Isla Vista: SB
Printer, 2016. 37-50. Print.
Chen, Jen Jun, and Shu Ching Yang. "Promoting Cross-cultural Understanding
and Language Use in Research-oriented Internet-mediated Intercultural
Exchange." Computer Assisted Language Learning 29.2 (2014): 262-88. Web. 15
Feb. 2016.
Dewey, Caitlin. "How Airbnb Promotes World Peace." The Washington Post.
N.p., 24 Nov. 2014. Web. 15 Feb. 2016.
Graff, Gerald, and Russel Durst. "Index of Templates." (n.d.): n. pag. Rpt. in
Writing 2 Winter 2016 Reader. By Cathy Birkenstein. Isla Vista: SB Printer, 2016.
106-13. Print.
Hua, Zhu. "Exploring Intercultural Communication: Language in Action Book
Review." Journal of Asian Pacific Communication 24.1 (2014): 135-38. Web. 15
Feb. 2016.

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Writing 2 Feedback Matrix for WP2

Table of Textual Features and Qualities
Met
Did Not Meet
Exceeded
Expectati
Expectations
Expectations
ons
Thesis Statement
X
Use of Textual Evidence from
X
Genres
Use of Course Readings
X
Analysis
X+
Organization/Structure
XAttention to Genre/Conventions
Xand Rhetorical Factors
Attention to Moves
X
Sentence-level Clarity,
X
Mechanics, Flow
Zach,
Comments and Grade
You put forth some solid work here, my
man. Nice job.
Please read through my comments on
how to re-see certain aspects of this
for your portfolio revision. In addition
to that, here are some other thoughts:
-I also want you to become better
friends with paragraphs. Break your
paragraphs up into bites. Lay down
your argument 1 piece at a time.
www.youtube.com/watch?
v=rWHniL8MyMM
-I want you to get much more specific
into the research and the claims of
these pieces. What specific data did
they collect? Whatd they find? Whats
going to be done with their work? I
dont feel like I learned anything new

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about culture from a communication or

geographic perspective -- help me
understand what theyre trying to
teach us about this issue. Get into the
data. Get into their RQs. What does it
seem like each perspective values with
regard to understanding this topic?
Id like you to have a more deliberate
argument at hand -- finding out what,
exactly, youre trying to convince me of
might also help you to think about
what kind of structure/organization
would be best suited to laying out that
argument from the start to the finish.
You did a solid job of describing, but I
want you to move past that and onto
evaluating.
Your name starts with a Z; you got this,
brother. :)
Z
9/10
(PS: I do want you to be happy with
this A, but I dont want you thinking
that this doesnt need work.
Everybodys paper does -- were in the
business of getting our writing as good
as it can possibly be.)