Introduction
The article examines the illusion internet creates around its users. Based on the article's evidence, 60% of the internet is filled with fake content meant to dupe users into generating traffic. Since 2013, analysts have claimed that half of the users on internet platforms such as YouTube are bots pretending to be real people. With no time, YouTube systems themselves could not differentiate between actual traffic and fake traffic (Read np). Even highly regarded technology companies such as Facebook could not verify their data sources. The entrenched falsehood generated around the virtual world has hindered progress in the extensively used platforms. This paper will carry out a rhetorical analysis of ‘how much of the internet is fake? Turns out, a lot of it, actually’ through logos and ethos rhetorical strategy.
Rhetorical Analysis
The author opens up the article with factual research to support his solid argument. This way, he pulls the reader's attention into the article's contents and later reveals his intention to prove his argument. Citing sources such as the Justice Department‘s unsealed records and quoting the number of money people lost due to internet fraudulence generates interest and retains the reader's interest in finding out more about the article. For example, according to the Justice Department, advertisers lost %36 million in fraudulent digital operations. The article employs factual data to convince the reader of the argument being pushed across. Without further convincing, a reader can easily believe the author and go along with his main idea (Read np). Apart from using factual information, the author digs deeper into how the internet operates to bring out a desired effect on the reader- digital advertisers usually want to meet two requirements- people clicking at the advertisements premium subscriptions. Hence, the author employs logic to pursue the reader that the information presented is accurate and actual.
After presenting verified information on the topic, the author’s article goes ahead to set the stage for describing the situation at hand and its perceived origins. For instance, advertisement platforms are programmed to pick up information from premium users and then use it to generate a personalized advertisement. At the same time, hackers can use the information to gain entry into financial banking systems. Developing a particular interest in the narratives makes the facts real and indisputable. For instance, duping investors into believing that they were increasing their consumer base, but in reality, they were being fed a lie. In the introductory part of the article, one cannot tell what is real and what is fake because of how the author articulates issues (Read np). Furthermore, a person can fake cookies while masquerading as a human. The author did an exemplary job providing evidence from which the reader could draw parallels with real-life issues, which helped the reader relate with more of the named incidences.
As the article dives deeper into the subject matter to come up with unique persuasive facts, the author begins to appeal to the inductive reasoning of the reader to define the rhetoric. As commonly known, the rising usage of the internet has, without a doubt, advantageous to the entire world due to the improvement of communication and delivery of information at a fast pace than before (Read np). To create a consistent argument and appeal to the inductive reasoning of the user, the author lays bare the facts and then uses the rhetorical questions for the reader to fill in the gaps that might be left unsaid. This way, the author leaves room for debate and makes the reader participate in the discussion at hand. Besides, the reader presents the information in a way that needs the reader to compare relatable issues. For example, while going through the article, the reader might think of related matters or bring up facts on other platforms. The use of a factual statement to make an argument brings out a contrast between reality and illusion. For instance, using years to pinpoint the stated facts to an actual timeline brings out the underlying urgent issues and relevance of the information presented. More so, the author ensures that he narrates the articles all possible scenarios, hence building up the item's inductive reasoning rhetoric. In short, the author exhaustively avoids the use of opinion so that he can appeal to the reader's reasonable judgment and solidify the argument into a persuasive message.
Apart from unique, rare facts, the author's ethos appeals coupled with statistics and logical flow of creative ideas, make the article easy to read and capture information without hindrance. Also, he ensures that he gives instances of the progress made on the internet fraudulence (Read np). For example, YouTube had to develop a new system that could detect the difference between human-generated traffic and bot-generated traffic to get rid of the fraudulent cases. Consequently, he uses hope to give a reason to fight the people who make use of fraud to make money or rob other honest internet users. Defining right from the wrong ad picking a side is one way of using ethos to persuade the reader that the article is not just tabling interesting facts but pushing forward an actionable solution to the persistent problem. Thus, the article's objective informs the reader and advises him or her to take hid of the information to not fall into the hands of evil internet users. In simpler terms, the author writes the article ethically while appealing to the reader’s principles. Hence the author appeals to the reader’s emotions and sense of security. In the end, the reader believes the article's content while, in hindsight remaining informed.
Conclusion
In the end section, the author calls for action. He makes use of subtitles to highlight all his points and bring the listener closer to his sentiments; hence he makes use of logos through deductive reasoning. Everyone has a role to play in the current society. The internet centrally caters to humans' needs and has completely changed how people socialize and conduct business daily. Nevertheless, nothing is perfect is in this world. The internet has come with both a negative and positive side. The positive side of the internet has been seen through cyberbullying and the entire society's ineptness to control internet content around different age groups. In the long run, fraudsters have found it convenient to rob the public through other age groups. Also, most sources from the internet are unverified hence cannot be used to make accurate decisions. People tend to believe what they hear or what seem pleasing to them. For instance, the accessibility nature of the internet makes information penetrate different levels of the society and cater to selective opinions without verification of accountability from the viewers.
Work cited
Read, Max. "How Much Of The Internet Is Fake?". Intelligencer, 2020, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/how-much-of-the-internet-is-fake.html.
