Along Came Molly

Theoretically, there is a young woman out there named Molly who is interested in the
topic of the way Black people are represented in the media. Molly may be tempted to read an
article or two about the subject. After this snippet of research, she may even go as far as
consulting a local or online library to read further into the subject from a scholarly perspective.
The question at hand in this scenario is which type of source is most useful for Molly: scholarly
or non-scholarly, if any? From Mollys perspective, either source can be useful, it just depends
on what she wants to gain out of her research. Thats why its necessary to read beyond the lines
of content in any genre -- understanding the authors purpose and especially the means in which
they support their argument can help any reader see which genre is most suited for their purpose.
In this case, I examine three sources that Molly may have found to prove that the suitability of
any given genre in a certain discipline is dependent on the audience as much as it is on the writer.
For Molly to be able to decide which source is most suitable for her, she must be able to identify
the authors purpose, which she can do by examining the content, structure, rhetorical features,
and surface features of the material.
Before jumping into an analysis of the authors technique, lets begin by judging each
piece by its cover, meaning the pieces title and background information. On the front of one of
the sources is the title No Getting Around the Black, a scholarly article written by Mark D.
Cunningham, a scholar in the Media Studies field, that was published in a Cinema Journal in
mid-2014. From these facts alone, we can deduce that this article fits the genre of scholarly
articles in the media field because it follows the conventions of that genre: the piece was
published in an established journal and the author, Cunningham, is an expert in his discipline.
However, Cunninghams title is one feature that does not appear to be conventional. Typically,

scholarly articles employ a long title that clearly lays out the content of the paper; however,
Cunningham uses a more ambiguous header, possibly as a way to entice the reader or make his
article stand out among the others in the journal.
In contrast, another scholarly article, called Demonizing the African Other, Humanizing
the Self: Hollywood and the Politics of Post-Imperial Adaptations undoubtedly follows the
conventions of title creation in the scholarly article genre. Its important to note here that the
author, Paul Ugor, is a professor of Literature and English, so it seems appropriate that he would
utilize verbose language in his writing and hence in his title. Another relevant fact about the
article is its source: it was first published in a journal called Atenea, a bilingual journal published
by the University of Puerto Rico. (Something that Molly should take into account as a reader).
Ironically, the title of Ugors article is more similar in format to the non-scholarly article
than Cunninghams. Throw Away the Script: How Media Bias Is Killing Black America is a
cultural article published by The Root -- an online newspaper that focuses primarily on Black
culture topics in the United States -- written by Kirsten West Savali, a senior writer for the
newspaper. Savali uses a colon in her title to separate the creative part of the title and the
explanatory part the same way Ugor does in his. Based on the titles of each article, we can see
that a reader cannot make assumptions about the utility of a source by only assessing the cover
features. Molly should instead pay attention to what moves the writer chooses to use in the meat
of the paper.
When a reader reads like a writer (Bunn), they are identifying the moves that the writer
makes, and in doing so can discern whether or not the writer and the article are right for them.
Though the writing of each of these authors share some conventional techniques, like those
employed in their title, they all use distinctive moves from one another. In Cunninghams No

Getting Around the Black he structures his article in a way that creates rhythm and patterns that
not only guide the reader along but also widen his prospective audience. By switching between
using evidence from pop culture references, personal experiences, and academic sources,
Cunningham is able to hold the attention of readers in a wider age bracket and interest range. In
one paragraph, he references Eminem, Justin Timberlake, and the film Django Unchained; where
in the following paragraph he cites the renowned novelist and professor Toni Morrison. Another
area where he uses rhythm is in his diction -- he balances colloquial sayings with scholarly
terminology with terms such as the elephant in the room and commensurate, respectively.
By fluctuating between different levels of formality in his tone, Cunningham is able to constantly
engage his audience.
Conversely, the vocabulary used by Ugor in his article is aimed toward a more exclusive
audience. Though this may make Ugor sound more erudite, he is subconsciously alienat[ing]
readers who dont recognize technical words or acronyms (Lunsford 311). Consequently, by
making this move, Ugor narrows the scope of his audience, the opposite of what Cunningham
does with his diction.
In an entirely other realm, Savalis word choice does not reflect a regard for her audience;
she refuses to filter her passion and anger about the topic in a way that neither Cunningham nor
Ugor afford themselves. This attitude is seen when Savali refers to Fox News pundits such as
Sean Hannity and Bill OReilly as being no better than propaganda peddlers seemingly
committed to the asinine concept of white superiority (3). Savali is able to write in this tone
because of the affordances she is granted by her genre; authors of scholarly articles, in contrast,
would not be able to write like this because of the limitations that exist within their genre
regarding tone. In situations like this, readers can learn a lot about the material they are reading

and the writer who wrote it by paying attention to language. A reader can decipher patterns,
rhythm, regard for audience, and tone all by examining the language moves made by an author.
As a reader, understanding how technique, rhetoric, and moves support the authors
argument is essential, but it is also important to be able to analyze the actual content of the
writing and what rhetorical devices are used to present it. One can do so by first identifying the
authors purpose and then determining how the author supports it. Cunninghams purpose is to
introduce and show examples in which black popular culture gets appropriated by outside racial
groups such as the way white producers, directors, and artists exploit black culture for their own
success (141). Cunningham is able to expand on this point by making use of his personal
emotions and anecdotes. For example, Cunningham reflects, Something inside of me is
disquieted with reading a white scholar writing about the films and filmmakers that inspired my
own sojourn into the Hollywood game two decades ago (142). By unveiling how he feels about
relevant situations, the audience is emotionally moved; in rhetorical terms, he uses pathos.
Another way he does this is through telling personal stories -- he recalls a time when he and a
white friend attended the film Fruitvale Station (2013) and had very differing reactions due to
their prior knowledge of Oscar Grants undeserved murder. At this point, Molly should think
about whether or not personal anecdotes would be helpful to her or not in researching black
representation in the media. In the words of Mike Bunn, think about what effect presenting []
personal information might have on readers (84). Though it may be seen as a risk to incorporate
so much personal content in a scholarly article, Cunningham can achieve something that most
other articles in his genre do not: a relationship between writer and reader. However, to make
sure he does not swing too far off track, Cunningham makes strides to remain somewhat
objective in the matter: In my quest to understand what motivates their interest, I am not

advocating for white scholars to forgo research that is black focused, or for filmmakers and
screenwriters to shy away from those topics as well (146).
Talking about personal emotions in a scholarly article the way Cunningham does in No
Getting Around the Black is commonly not a convention of that genre. Though Ugor doesnt
necessarily use this move, he does use I statements. Whereas Cunningham uses first person
perspective as a way to promote pathos, Ugor speaks in first person as a way to clarify his
actions to the audience. Here, he explains his analysis by stating, In this regard, I interrogate
what it means to adapt a work of art (133). The reason Ugor uses this tactic so often is because
his subject is so complicated -- his purpose is to analyze the representation of Africans in 18th
and 19th century novels and films and the reappearances of those roles in todays Hallmark
Hollywood films by comparing the 1885 text of King Solomons Mines with its 2004 film
adaptation. This is clearly a move by Ugor because it is not necessary to use I statements when
establishing the background of a topic because there are other ways to present that type of
information. In order to fully comprehend his analysis, the audience needs prior knowledge of
18th and 19th century literature. Since his audience is bilingual and therefore cross-cultural, this
can be an issue; Lunsford claims that when arguing across cultures or languages, another
stylistic issue might be clarity (319). One can deduce that not all of Ugors audience will be
able to fully fathom his his purpose.
Savali makes her thoughts clear in a different way from Ugor -- she never asks questions.
While both Cunningham and Ugor use thought-provoking questions throughout their writing,
Savalis provokes thought by other means. How might never asking questions benefit Savali in
her purpose and relationship with the audience? By never asking questions, she sounds selfassured, which in turn helps her stand her ground in her argument that the media that depicts

African Americans deliberately supports a white supremacist agenda or if its biased coverage
of Black people has become subconscious, something equally [as] dangerous. Another way
Savali supports her claims is by establishing pathos and ethos through the sources she uses.
Before the reader even gets a chance to begin the article, they must pass an emotional photo of
two mourners hugging at the funeral service for Eric Garner (Getty Images). Images can evoke
emotion in a way that words sometimes cannot, and that is one affordance of the non-scholarly
article genre that Savali uses effectively in her writing. The way these authors present their
content, as well as support it, is something that the reader should take into account as much as
the moves that the writer makes. That way, readers like Molly can use a combination of
understanding of content as well as an understanding of style to decide which work is best for
their objective.
In general, academic texts are regarded as being more credible, yet less accessible, than
non-scholarly articles. Their context plays a great role in this: being in an academic journal gives
scholarly articles less affordances and more limitations. Non scholarly articles, on the contrary,
have more affordances than limitations. But this doesnt mean that non scholarly articles may be
more successful in persuading their audience; having too many affordances -- like
advertisements, photos, comment sections, social media links, videos, and hyperlinks -- can
potentially prevent the audience from finishing the original article.
When readers like Molly try to find an article appropriate to their needs, they should not
limit their decision-making scope to the title of an article. The reader must be able to identify the
purpose of the article, and beyond that, what the author does to show that his or her argument is
relevant. Any of the three articles referenced in this essay could be useful to Molly, it just
depends on what she is looking for, and in order to find that, she must be able to read
analytically.