Penn State: The Anti-Bitzer

As I read Bitzer's "The Rhetorical Situation", I could not help but think about its core principle: that rhetoric is created through human response to a certain set of circumstances. He uses political speeches and other appropriate reactions to specific series of events to illustrate the validity of his point. In his example, there is one ideal response to the circumstantial surroundings of that situation. So what happens when the response falls flat on its face in attempting to create (or avoid) a rhetorical situation?

For three days, the Penn State football program has been at the forefront of the American sports conversation due to a sex abuse scandal and ongoing coverup that centers around former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky and involves both coaches and administrators. Some of these individuals have resigned or taken "leaves of absence" (read: resigned) to deal with the fallout. A slew of other figures could be on the chopping block, including legendary head football coach Joe Paterno. Paterno, one of the most revered coaches in athletics for his integrity and his unwillingness to participate in shady tactics in recruiting and otherwise, is falling out of favor with a fan base that has dealt with his less-than-graceful aging with patience and courtesy.

Now well past eighty years old, Paterno is being raked over the coals over his refusal to contact authorities upon hearing of an encounter between Sandusky and a young boy that was witnessed by a graduate assistant in the showers in the football locker room. Instead, he reported to the athletic director, who then reported it to the president, who then did nothing. As a result, Sandusky went on abusing children for NINE YEARS before he was indicted on state and federal charges, all while enjoying an office in the athletic building and access to university facilities--even after his retirement in 1999.

With all that said, the situation is bleak at Penn State. The athletic director is all but gone and is facing perjury charges. A former university administrator has also been charged with perjury and recently resigned. The president could be next in line. And Paterno, revered though he is, in on thin ice--at best.

Paterno's weekly press conference, which would normally be reserved for answering questions related to this weekend's final home game of the season against Nebraska, was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. Because of the firestorm, over 100 national media figures gathered in State College, PA for the presser--an abnormally high number even for the biggest college football game. With the nation waiting to hear from the man who has watched his program go through perhaps the most odd, precipitous in-season fall in the history of collegiate athletics, the university cancelled the press conference. Simply cancelled it. At 11:45, it was announced that the president had called off the question-and-answer session a mere half hour before it was scheduled to begin.

Needless to say, the twittersphere, the blogosphere, and the national pundits went crazy. How could anyone think it was a good idea to remain silent while speculation was running rampant surrounding your football team, who is still scheduled to somehow circle the wagons and play Nebraska in four days? It was a complete fail with regards to seizing the rhetorical situation. Unluckily for Penn State, due to the instantaneous nature of the news cycle, the rhetorical situation was then seized by the media, who--in Vatzian fashion--defined it themselves. They called for resignations and firings. They demanded answers. They discussed the vile nature of the allegations. They remarked on the impending end of a legendary career on such disgusting terms.

Normally--depending on which theory you subscribe to--a rhetorical situation is defined by what happens or what is said. History may say that the Penn State scandal was defined by what didn't happen and what wasn't said, highlighting the exact ineptitude by the so-called leaders of the university that caused the problem in the first place.