03/11/11

Story by Peggy Graham

Terri Easley - College Scholar

JCCC college scholar looks at how images make arguments

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Terri Easley, associate professor, speech and debate, Johnson County Community College, will present two lectures on visual rhetoric in April as part of the JCCC College Scholars program. Both lectures are free and open to the public.

• The Visual as Argument: An Analysis of Images as Tools of Persuasion will be from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, in the M.R. and Evelyn Hudson Auditorium of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art. A reception precedes the event at 6:30 p.m. in the Atrium.
  
  In this presentation, Easley explores the ways images shape and communicate persuasive messages.  Instead of just acting emotionally upon viewing images, Easley encourages people to learn the tools to evaluate visual images and become better consumers of media.

• Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: Visual Representations of Women in American Politics will be from 11 a.m. –noon, Thursday, April 14, in the Hudson Auditorium.
  
  As women have stepped onto the stage of American politics, images have been crucial to defining their role in the political sphere. In this presentation, Easley discusses the tactics and impacts of the current state of the visual representations of women in the image-oriented political arena.

In addition to her role as coach of JCCC’s top-ranked debate team, Easley has a reputation as a scholar in visual rhetoric. Her interest in the power of images to communicate complex messages began during her years in graduate school at Baylor University, when visual rhetoric was a fairly new concept in the field of communication studies. Easley has continued to contribute scholarly knowledge to the topic through her research looking at the specific aspects of how images make arguments.

“Since images are generally emotionally charged objects, it is important that we assess how those images can be evaluated as effective persuasive tools,” Easley said. “Because images play a dominant role in our lives, it is important that we understand how images play into the process of persuasion.”

Easley has a bachelor’s degree in literature from the University of Texas at Dallas and a master’s degree in communications studies from Baylor University. Easley has used her research to establish an important place for herself in the discourse of communication. She has had two presentations accepted at the National Communication Association National Conference, both of which focus on visual rhetoric. She serves on the editorial board for Contemporary Argumentation and Debate: The Journal of the Cross Examination Debate Association.

For more information about these presentations, e-mail Easley. For more information about the JCCC College Scholars program, contact Karen Martley, director, Staff and Organizational Development, 913-469-8500, ext. 3467.

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