Public Communication

Activity 1: Analyzing the Purpose of Public Communication

Instructions: In class, we discussed how public communication is used to achieve a specific purpose. For this activity, you will apply your knowledge about the different purposes of public communication to analyze the purpose of public statement released by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in response to the 2016 Cambridge Analytica data hacks. Refer to class notes and course readings from Unit 1 (Introduction to Public Communication) to help you complete this activity.

Read Mark Zuckerberg’s public statement in the article attached to this online activity.

(1) Identify which one of the three general purposes of public communication (to inform, to persuade, to entertain) you believe that Mark Zuckerberg is using in his public statement. Consider this carefully and explain your answer using at least 3 pieces of evidence from his public statement.

(2) Based on your answer to (1), identify Mark Zuckerberg’s specificpurpose (e.g., Mark Zuckerberg was informing Facebook users about ____; Mark Zuckerberg was persuading Facebook users to _____; or Mark Zuckerberg was entertaining Facebook users by ____). Explain your answer using at least 3 pieces of evidence from the email.

In 2-3 sentences, explain why it is important for an audience to be able to identify the purpose of a speech/email/essay/etc.

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Answer preview to public communication