UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE PODCAST RHETORICS INSIGHTS INTO PODCASTS AS PUBLIC PERSUASION A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY By MATTHEW VINCENT JACOBSON Norman, Oklahoma 2021 PODCAST RHETORICS INSIGHTS INTO PODCASTS AS PUBLIC PERSUASION A DISSERTATION APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH BY THE COMMITTEE CONSISTING OF Dr. William Kurlinkus, Chair Dr. Bill Endres Dr. Justin Reedy Dr. Roxanne Mountford Dr. Sandra Tarabochia © Copyright by MATTHEW VINCENT JACOBSON 2021 All Rights Reserved. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements . viii Abstract . xii Chapter 1: The Argument for Rhetorically Analyzing Podcasts . 1 I. Introduction . 2 II. Rhetorically Defining Podcasts . 5 III. A Call for Podcast Scholarship . 14 IV. Podcast Scholarship in Rhetoric and Writing Studies . 18 V. The Need to Rhetorically Analyze Podcast Rhetoric . 24 VI. Introducing Three Analytics of Podcasting: Technology, Sonic, and Conversational Rhetorics in a Public Argument Over Mask Wearing in The Joe Rogan Experience . 28 VII. Project Overview . 44 Chapter 2: The Technological Horizons of Podcast Persuasion . 45 Chapter 3: The Sounds of Podcast Rhetoric . 47 Chapter 4: Deliberation or Demagoguery? The Rhetoric of Podcast Conversations . 50 Chapter 2: The Technological Horizons of Podcast Persuasion . 53 I. Introduction . 54 II. Rhetorical Theories of Philosophy of Technology . 55 III. The Technological Rhetoric of Podcast Technologies . 64 A. The Rhetoric of Podcasting’s Regulatory Context in the U.S. and the Standing Reserve of Internet Audiences . .64 B. The Rhetoric of Production and Post-Production Tech . .72 v C. The Rhetoric of Distribution and “Listening” Tech . 98 D. The Rhetoric of Promotion and Marketing Tech . .109 IV. Introducing Technological Context and Technological Action . .118 Technological Context . .119 Technological Action . 120 Chapter 3: The Sounds of Podcast Rhetoric . 123 I. Introduction . 124 II. Theorizing Listening and Sound . 127 An Overview of Listening . 128 Key Theories of Sound . 120 Key Approaches to Listening . 144 III. Artifact Selection and Description . 155 IV. Methods Part 1: Writing to Listen . 156 V. Methods Part 2: Analyzing “A City” of Rhetorical Sound . 169 VI. Discussion: The Sounds of Podcast Rhetoric . 202 VII. Conclusion . 211 Chapter 4: Deliberation or Demagoguery? The Rhetoric of Podcast Conversations . 214 I. Introduction . 215 II. Theorizing Longform Podcast Conversation . 223 III. The Rhetoric of Conversation in the Joe Rogan Experience Podcast . 234 Artifact Description: Episode #176 featuring Steven Rinella . 235 Artifact Description: Episode #1555 featuring Alex Jones and Tim Dillon . 237 Analysis: Rhetorics of Unedited Podcast Conversation . 239 vi IV. Conclusion . 273 Chapter 5: Ending and Beginning . 279 I. Introduction . 280 II. Summary and Key Findings . 281 III. The Future of Podcast Scholarship . 287 References . 293 vii For Sam, Cara, and Mom viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Podcast Rhetorics would not have been possible without the support of several people throughout the course of my life. It has taken more than one village to drag me to this moment. First, I would like to thank those at the University of Oklahoma who have made this project possible, starting with the members of my committee: Drs. Roxanne Mountford, Bill Endres, Sandy Tarabochia, Justin Reedy, and especially my advisor, William Kurlinkus. Thank you for your support, wisdom, guidance, and enthusiasm. It has been an absolute privilege to work with all of you. Words cannot encompass nor convey the fullness of my gratitude. Will, your feedback has been invaluable—you epitomize what a dissertation advisor should be. Thank you to my former co-workers in the Office of First-Year Composition (Amanda, Kasey, Courtney, Jason, Rebecca, Chris, Kalyn, and others) as well to OU English as a whole—my time as a graduate student here has helped me develop as both a scholar and human being. Thank you, Sara Knight, for always holding down the fort, whether in Gittinger Hall (R.I.P.) or Cate 2. And Rilla Askew, thanks for letting me finally take a creative writing course as a graduate student— even if it was cross listed as an undergrad class as well, it was a dream come true. I would also like to acknowledge my former professors, mentors, and classmates at Florida Gulf Coast University during my B.A. and M.A., whose support was indispensable to my being accepted into a Ph.D. program in the first place: Drs. Brad Busbee, Rebecca Totaro, Douglas Harrison, and Jim Brock; professors Linda Rowland, Carol Bledsoe, and Lori Cornelius; and classmates Rebecca Youngblood, Catherine Gorman, Morgan Souza, and (now) Drs. Allison Serraes, Amy Cicchino, and Katie Randall. Thank you, Grandma Grace and Grandpa Al, for your constant support throughout this long process—I look forward to celebrating my success over some homemade cookies. Dad, ix thanks for the food, shelter, the many games of chess we’ve both enjoyed, and far too many other things than I can reasonably list here. Aunt Christine, Uncle Chris, and Uncle Eric, thank you for your love and generosity as well. Thank you, as well, to my friends both old and new, who have each helped me in different ways. David, thank you for showing me what awaits on the other side of this long journey: unemployment, yes, but also the ability to truly enjoy life again. Your pep talks got me through many tough times. Jake, there were days when I was working on this project where our video game sessions were the only thing I looked forward to. Nico, thanks for finding me an amazing deal on that used Hobie kayak I purchased with the money I saved from not attending CCCCs one last time—you’re right, sometimes, I just need to jump in the ocean and find myself again. AJ, watching The Mandalorian and Loki on your Disney Plus subscription reminded me that there was more to life than graduate school. Odyssey, I miss you terribly—you should have been able to read these words. Elizabeth, thank you for encouraging me to learn more about myself and grow. Sanjana, thank you for recommending noise-cancelling headphones—they are lifechanging. Juliette, thank you for writing with me over Zoom and showing me the alt account you made a few years back to joke about writing your own dissertation on Twitter. Thank you as well to my many online friends in and outside of rhetoric and composition, whose jokes, advice, encouragement, and conversation helped me keep writing throughout this pandemic. Thank you to my late grandparents Elsie and Owen Tester, whose love I still feel. Thank you to my cousins Michael and Cathy LaFata and my uncle Frank LaFata—your support is a palpable force for good in my life. I would also like to acknowledge my infusion nurse Jason Garvey and all the other medical professionals who have made it possible for me to both live with Crohn’s disease and to x somehow get a Ph.D. despite this disability. To say that pursuing higher education with a chronic autoimmune illness is difficult would be a massive understatement. If I ever made it look easy by hiding my struggles, I did so as an act of sheer desperation. Above all, I would like to thank my sisters Samantha and Cara and my mom. I dedicate this dissertation to you three. Sam and Cara, thank you for showing me that it was possible to do well at school. The behavior you’ve both modeled has always been instructive, and it is not your fault that I am largely immune to such guidance. The two of you showed me 1) that some suckers actually complete their homework and that 2) it is possible to solve math problems (at least in theory). Most importantly, you both taught me what it means to be tenacious, to be obstinate, to be fierce, to be unconquerable. These are lessons I’ve needed many times. Cara, you’re the coolest older sister a little brother could ask for. I always have, and always will, look up to you. Sam, as twins we’ve shared a lot, and one of those things is, unfortunately, a chronic illness. You were diagnosed almost a decade before I was, when treatments were nowhere near as effective and when losing insurance coverage for even a moment meant possibly losing it for life. In that time, up until now, and beyond, you were, are, and will be the biggest source of inspiration in my life. Every N.P.O. hospital stay, every Prednisone cycle, every PICC line, every second of excruciating pain felt bearable because I had already seen you march through that fire and come out on the other side. Beyond you, I have no other hero. Mom, as you know better than most, formal education and I never quite got along until college (and even then, with reservations). You helped me learn, through my own warm, stinging tears, how to spell “laff” properly as “laugh” and were always understanding when bailing me out of the principal’s office when my inability to pay attention in school and personal mission to xi entertain myself inevitably got me into trouble. You never stopped believing in me, a stance that often put us at odds. While I planned to pursue employment at a gas station convenience store once I graduated high school, you suggested I apply to college (even if only to humor you). Ultimately, I’m not sure whose idea was best, but this dissertation owes itself to your advice. Love you. xii ABSTRACT Asserting that professional podcasts serve as an important platform for arguments regarding issues of public importance, Podcast Rhetorics advances rhetoric and writing studies scholarship by moving beyond the dominant focus on the medium’s utility for multimodal composition pedagogy to address podcasting’s rhetorical dimensions outside the classroom.