Abstract
There are numerous ways to get into trouble and there are numerous types of trouble to get into. In this thesis I explore if you can get into trouble for something you did not say, and if so, how? I investigate how the audience, and potential audience awareness, may affect the way the speaker communicates. Professor Klein responded to a student requesting a no-harm exam for black students by asking if he should give half a concession to mixed-race students. Lt. Kelly told the 17-year-old who had shot and killed two people he had done nothing wrong as he donated him money in support. Nir Rosen claimed through Twitter that a reporter had to outdo another by being sexually assaulted, proceeding to say it would be funny if the other reporter had been sexually assaulted as well. The consequences may vary depending on what you have done; a warning, a slap on the wrist, losing your job and/or being ridiculed online. Some, or all, of these happened to the three men who posted or replied to someone, which surprised them all. I find that to explicitly deny someone’s request is in Klein’s instance more polite than denying it through absurd and rhetorical questions like he did. Irony and rhetorical questions can easily come across as rude and mocking, especially when social cues are not present. Being unaware of the actual audience, and its size, can lead to more trouble than, for instance, Rosen was expecting. He appears to have formulated his tweet with a smaller and more likeminded audience in mind, and subsequently, unintentionally enraged numerous readers he had not intended nor expected to reach. I also argue Lt. Kelly’s occupation might have been the triggering factor for his firing, rather than his words being culpable in isolation. Messaging is as much about the receiver’s perspective as it is the sender’s intentions.