Response to "The Rhetorical Situation"

    While reading "The Rhetorical Situation," I feel that Bitzer creates a strong argument for rhetoric in the written and spoken word, but also eludes to digital rhetoric and modern uses without explicitly stating so.  Though my experience with rhetoric is relatively limited to the ethos, pathos and logos aspects, I found that Bitzer created a generalized sense of rhetoric that anyone with experience could relate to.  It is in this generalization that I feel the strongest relation to digital writing is made, even though the digital communications are never mentioned.
    To better understand what digital rhetoric may amount to, I thought it was useful to have a good understanding of what forms modern rhetoric can take, and what methods we are familiar with.  Bitzer makes a strong point of rhetoric and its spoken limitations when he share the story of the people who are fishing and how they relay information to each other.  The short, concise wording of the fishermen is a great contrast to the almost cyclical talking done by, say, politicians or lawyers.  How can such different ends of the rhetorical spectrum exist and be classified by the same word?  To understand the answer, I found it helpful to again look at what forms of rhetoric WE are familiar with as digital natives.
    We are all exposed to advertisements on a daily basis.  Claims of Product X being superior to Product Y mean nothing without some concrete evidence to back up the claim.  It is through these claims that I feel Bitzer could make a connection between written and digital forms of rhetoric if an updated form of "The Rhetorical Situation" was written.  By relying on facts and convincing arguments to persuade potential customers,  it is clear that modern marketing teams have brought written and spoken rhetoric to the digital age.
    Though challenging at first, the Bitzer reading was captivating and useful in relating past forms of rhetoric to the modern digital world.  With all of the new forms of media and communication, it is clear that how rhetoric has been conveyed  in the past is only the base of how it will be used in the future.  Even with interactive advertisements, it is clear that the world of rhetoric is evolving almost as quickly as the digital media itself.