• Ethos, ethical appeal, is a more important mode of persuasion than we might first realize. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Use what language you will, you can never say anything but what you are." Ethos, which also falls under the rubric of credibility, has to do with the audience's perception of the character of the speaker. If a speaker impresses the audience with his/her appearance, competence or expertise, intelligence, good will, honesty, dynamism, etc., chances are that he/she will persuade the audience. If not, he/she will not be persuasive. Ever since Nixon covered up the facts behind the Watergate burglary, both Republicans and Democrats have attempted to reduce the power of their opponents by attacks on their opponents' credibility. The credibility of Hillary Clinton, who is not an elected official, is under constant attack by the Republicans because they want to undermine her power and the power of her husband, the President. The Democrats did the same thing when they questioned the veracity and forthrightness of President Bush regarding the Iran-Contra affair. Instead of relying on logos (the issues), modern politicians seem to stress the lack of their opponents' ethics. Athough, President Reagan's credibility was attacked, particularly regarding Iran-Contra, Reagan was known as the "Great Communicator" because of his charisma. One scholar has called Reagan's kind of credibility charismatic articulation. The charismatic articulator has the ability to say what people feel and wish to hear, but are unable to say themselves. Rush Limbaugh, an extremely articulate entertainer, functions as a charismatic articulator for a significant segment of the U.S. population. However, another significant number of the population has serious questions regarding the evidence that he uses. Both Reagan and Limbaugh have had the added credibility derived from truly believing what they espouse.
  Modern scholars have determined that there are seven dimensions for source credibility (Listed in order of importance).

1. Competence : The level of knowledge and experience the audience perceives in the speaker. Preparation, body language, appearance, educational level are important here.
2. Trustworthyness: The reliability of the speaker. Does the speaker do what he/she says. Type ofoccupation, e.g., used-car salesman versus experienced mechanic.
3. Dynamism: Aggressiveness, force, energy, loud/soft, rhythm, body language,etc. Eliminate "and ah," "uh."
4. Power: Appearance, whether speaker can provide rewards and punishment, wealth, etc.
5. Goodwill: Degree to which speaker has audience's versus his/her best interests in mind.
6. Idealism: Degree to which speaker is perceived as having values and qualities that audience esteems and desires. M.L. King is an example of a speaker with high level of idealism.
7. Similarity: Degree to which speaker is perceived as resembling audience. Lamar Alexander wears a plaid shirt to establish similarity. Fred Thompson rented a pickup truck during his campaign for the Senate for the same reasons.

---

Return to Home Page

© Robert Gwynne 1999