Ajah Butler

01/31/24

WRIT 2

Reader Response Draft

Analytic Essay

When I started this project, I immediately knew I wanted to focus on teens and

narcotic use because this is an issue that has been around me for most of my life. I’m

currently thinking of switching my major to sociology for some reason this topic was in

my head when this project started. My article is titled “Medical Marijuana Laws and Teen

Marijuana Use” and it’s about the argument that medical marijuana laws are sending the

wrong message to teens causing an increase in marijuana use amongst teens. For this

project I want to do what my peer-reviewed article did and get the message across that

the legalization of medical marijuana doesn’t affect teen drug use but in a more simple

way for people to take information away from it.

My plan for my genre translation is to make a TikTok video. I think a Tik Tok video is a

good idea because with the right marketing strategy it can reach many peoples pages

and potentially reach my target audience. My target audience are people doing legal

and economic research. In the TikTok video instead of being just informational, I want to

incorporate all of the appeals (ethos, pathos, logos) because I think it will help make the

content more engaging and relatable to my target audience. By using ethos, I can

establish credibility by using the information from my peer reviewed article and stating

what makes the authors of that article credible. Pathos will be included in the video by

including how teen drug use has been around me personally. Lastly, incorporating logos
will ensure that my TikTok video is logical and well-structured, presenting the

information of my peer-reviewed article clearly and concisely.

I’m confident in changing my genre from a peer-reviewed article to a TikTok video

because TikTok has taken over the world, brought awareness to so many things, and

educated people on stuff. It can be something as silly as “cool ways to tie your shoes” or

something as serious as “ How to donate to Palestine during this ongoing genocide”. My

chosen peer-reviewed article says “3-4 percentage point increase in the percentage of

high school students who reported having smoked marijuana in the past 30 days,

accompanied by a similarly sized decrease in the percentage of 10th and 12th graders

who view regular marijuana use as risky” (Anderson et al.). Spreading information like

this is important and using TikTok will potentially help me reach people that I didn’t plan

to reach and take the information from my peer-reviewed article even further. This genre

change is important because it’s, of course, reaching a different audience than the

peer-reviewed article itself.

In the reading “Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources,” it said,

“A genre evolves through human use and activity to be a durable and usable form for

carrying out human communicative intentions in fairly stable ways (Rosenberg, 2011). I

chose this quote because it emphasizes the importance of adapting to the preferences

and communication styles of the target audience. By changing the genre, I can tailor my

message to better resonate with the new audience and increase the likelihood of them

engaging with and understanding the information. This shift in genre allows me to

explore different modes of communication, such as visual aids or interactive elements,

which can enhance the overall effectiveness of conveying my research findings.

Another quote from a class reading is "All genres matter because they shape our

everyday lives" (Dirk, 2010). I chose this quote because it highlights the significance of

various forms of communication in shaping our experiences and interactions. By

utilizing TikTok as a platform to discuss if there is a correlation between the legalization

of medical marijuana laws and teen marijuana use, I can tap into a genre that is highly

influential among late high school students and early college students and directly

impacts their understanding and attitudes towards the topic. This aligns with the idea

that, by leveraging different genres, we can effectively reach and influence diverse

audiences in meaningful ways.

My peer-reviewed article contains a lot of logos, including data and legal

information. This allows readers to either agree or disagree with the peer-reviewed

article. Some genre conventions my genre has are the format of the app and the use of

interactive features, which are how people differentiate the TikTok app from others. My

rhetorical context is the correlation between medical marijuana laws and teen marijuana

usage in legalized states and why teens feel the need to use drugs. I translate pathos

into the rhetorical context of my new genre because it includes a "why," and that can

allow readers to empathize with the motivations behind teen drug use because

everyone was a teen at some point in their life, and they know it's not easy to navigate

the pressures and challenges that come with adolescence henceforth teen drug use.

Genre Translation

Intro: Hey everyone, my name is Ajah Butler, and I wanted to come on this platform to

talk about some issues. I currently go to UCSB, and for one of my classes, I have to do
a project where I do a genre translation on a topic I’m interested in. It basically means to

change the way a message comes across to a certain audience that I’m trying to reach.

Visuals for the introduction: Include the UCSB logo as well as images of teens using

drugs.

Reason Behind the Video: The topic I chose to focus on is teen marijuana use. I chose

this topic because this is an issue that has been around me for most of my life. Another

reason I chose this topic is because I am planning on changing my major to sociology,

and I felt this topic would be a great way to apply my interest in social issues to a

practical project. I hope to shed light on the complexities of teen narcotic use and

contribute to the ongoing debate and conversation surrounding this important issue. It

is important that we continue to educate teens on the potential risks and consequences

of marijuana use, as well as address the societal influences that may glamorize its use.

Marijuana is too accessible to teens, and we must work together to create a more

informed and responsible community when it comes to drug use. Let's prioritize the

well-being and future of our youth by promoting healthy choices and awareness.

Credibility: My project requires me to find a peer reviewed article to gather research on

my chosen topic. The article I found is called “Medical Marijuana Laws and Teen

Marijuana Use,” written by Dr. D. Mark Anderson, Benjamin Hansen, and Daniel I. Rees. Dr.

D. Mark Anderson is a professor at Montana State University and studies and teaches

agricultural economics and economics. Benjamin Hansen is a professor of economics at the

University of Oregon. His research interests include health economics, risky behaviors, the

economics of crime, and the and the economics of education. Daniel I. Rees is a professor at

the University of Colorado Denver, and he does research in economics too.

Visuals: Include pictures of authors and logos of the schools they teach at.

Research: The article mentions how, from the mid-2000’s through 2011, marijuana usage

among American teenagers increased by 3–4 percent. Policymakers and law enforcement

believe this is due to the increase in medical marijuana laws. They argue that these laws are

sending the wrong message to teens. Others argue that these new laws have made it harder for

teens to access marijuana because drug dealers are being replaced by caregivers and

dispensaries. The authors, of course, did research to see who was right. This research includes

examining the relationship between medical marijuana laws and youth consumption by getting

data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) between 1993 and 2011. The

data includes sixteen states, some of them being California, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, and

Washington, and when they all legalized medical marijuana. It allowed them to estimate the

effect of legalization on outcomes like marijuana use in the past month, frequent marijuana use,

and the use of marijuana on school property.

Results: The author's results were not consistent enough to prove that the legalization of

medical marijuana caused an increase in the use of marijuana among high school students. The

estimates from the preferred specification are small, consistently negative, and are never

statistically distinguishable from zero. Using the 95 % confidence interval around these

estimates suggests that the impact of legalizing medical marijuana on the probability of

marijuana use in the past 30 days is no larger than 1.5 percentage points, and the impact of

legalization on the probability of frequent marijuana use in the past 30 days is no larger than 0.8

percentage points.

Conclusion on Research: Although I learned that the legalization of medical marijuana

does not have a significant impact on the likelihood of high school students using

marijuana, I still think that it's an issue that warrants further investigation, especially
considering the potential long-term effects on public health and social behaviors.

Understanding the nuances of marijuana legalization and its impact on youth is crucial

for policymakers and public health officials to make informed decisions.

Closing remarks: The link to the peer reviewed article will be in my bio for anyone who

is interested in furthering their knowledge on this topic. Thank you for watching. Please

like and share this video. And leave a comment if you want to see more videos like this.

Works Cited

Works Cited

Dirk, Kerry. “Navigating Genres – Writing Spaces.” Writing Spaces,

https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/navigating-genres/. Accessed 7 February

2024.

Rosenberg, Karen. “Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources –

Writing Spaces.” Writing Spaces,

https://writingspaces.org/past-volumes/reading-games-strategies-for-reading-sch

olarly-sources/. Accessed 7 February 2024.