The Rhetoric of Garner Ted Armstrong

68 Pages·2017·3.75 MB·English

by  Stephen George Dick

Portland State University
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Dissertations and Theses Dissertations and Theses
1972
The Rhetoric of Garner Ted Armstrong
Stephen George Dick
Portland State University
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Recommended Citation
Dick, Stephen George, "The Rhetoric of Garner Ted Armstrong" (1972).Dissertations and Theses.Paper 1627.
10.15760/etd.1626
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AN ABSTRACT OF mE THESIS OF Stephen George Dick tor the
Master ot Science in Speech presented March 13, 1972.
Title: The Rhetoric ot Garner Ted Armstrong
APPROVED BY MEMBERS OF THE THESIS COMMITTEE:
Stephen 10 okott, Chairman

. Larry Steward ..
.

William Hamilton
Garner Ted Armstrong is fast becoming a well known
religious and political commentator. The purpose of tihis
thesis was to describe and discuss the techniques·and
characteristics of Mr. Armstrong's rhetoric. The question
r
to be answered was "What are the characteristics of a
successful religious broadcaster?"
The method used- in the selection of the speeches to
be used in this study consisted of selectin,s a ,number('ot
speeches (56), then breaking thea down into theme categories.
Atter analysis there were eleven categories. One speech was
selected from each category, and these eleven speeches were
the apeechesthat were used in the study.
The results of my study showed that Mr. Armstrong
uses various forms of persuasive techniques, among them,
for-example, the simile. The logical development ot Mr.
Armstrong's spee'ches leaves a great deal to be desired.
" He does not support his assertions and leaves the audience
to supply a great deal of the support and verification for
his arguments. His greatest attribute is his voice and
personality. He has a very pleasant voice and his personal­
ity is similar to that of an ente~ine~. Possibly his
inventory ot subjects is one of the mal n attractions of his
He speaks, generally, on social problems such as
broadc~st.
pollution, crime, and drugs. He is a successful broadcaster,
and quite possibly it is the combination of these char­
acteristics that make him so· successful.
THE RHETORIC OF GARNER TED ARMSTRONG
BY

STEPHEN GEORGE DICK

A Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirement tor the degree ot

MASTER OF SCIENCE

IN

SPEECH

Portland State University
1972
TO THE OFFICE OF GRADUATE STUDIES:
The members of the Committee approve the thesis or
Stephen George Dick presented March 13, 1972.
tarry Stewa d
APPROVED:

of Speech
David T. Clark, Dean of Gradua:te Studies
March 17, 1972
iii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This work is dedicated to all those individuals
whose knowledge and patience made its ,completion possible.
Special thanks to Dr. Stephen Kosokoff. His unwavering
patience and friendship far exceeded his invaluable advice.
Also special thanks to Dave Jack. His and
unde~Btanding
assistance were appreciated far greater than can be
expressed.
And last but not least, to my wife Linda. Her
encouragement, understanding, patience and support were
instrumental in the completion of this paper.
--
I .
,I I
iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS •••,. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • •• iil

,LIST OF TABLES...................................... V

CHAPTER
I. INTRODUCTION••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 1

HISTORY OF BROADCASTING•••••••••••••••••••• 1

METHODS OF RESEARCH •••••••••••••••••••••••• 6

SELECTION OF SPEECHES •••••••••••••••••••••• 8

GENERAL PURPOSE: CHAPTER SU~RIES••••••••• 11

II. BIOGRAPHy•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
1.3
III. STyLE•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 18

IV. LOGICAL DEVELOPMENT••••••••••••••••••••••• 29

V. CONTENT••••••••••••'•••••••••••••••••••••••• 48

VI. SUMMARY••••• ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 54

~
57

ADDENDA. •... • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • .1

BIBLIOORlPHY••••••••••••••••••••••••••'•••••••••••,••• 56 '-.,.
y
, LIST OF TABLES
TABLE
I. THEME CATlQORIES OF THE 56 ••••••• Sa
PROGRAMS~
CHAPTER OIB
The need for a religious atfiliation is an import­
ant one to many people. It can be fulfilled in several
ways. An individual may go to a local church, he may
revival meetings, or he may listen to gospel radio
att~nd
programs. By listening to a gospel radio program, an
individual can listen to the word of God, as delivered
by the radio preacher, and thus satisfY a basic need
for affiliation. Such a program is "The World Tomorrow."
The speaker of the program, Garner Ted Armstrong, is the
topic of this thesis.
The history ot religious broadcasting is almost as
old as radio itself. The very first transmitted sermon
was done by Dwight L. Moody with the use ot Alexander
Graham Bell's telephone in 1976. It wasn't until 1906
on Christmas Eve that Reginald A. Fressenden gave the
1
first religious oriented broadcast on the wireless. .
The program consisted of scripture readfi ng, violin music,
and some carols.
While experiments on the radio continued, the idea
of religious broadcasting went into a dormant period.
Commerical progress in the broadcast field was stalled
during World War,' I because the government controled
all the radio transmitters. War were lifted
regulation~
in 1919 and radio began a new iite. In 1921 religious
, ,1·...Barry Sidell, Gospel Radlo, (Lincoln, Nebraska, 1970),
53.
Bac~ to the Bible Press, p.
I '
2
broadcasting to the air in the form of a church
re~urned
2
service done on January 2, 1921 over KDKA in Pittsburg.
The February 1922 issue of Literary Digest gave gospel radio
national attention.
Preaching by wireless is more than a passing

fad, for already, we are assured, it has proved

at
entlrely practicable for a man to sit home
­
even, for that matter, to lie abed if is so

h~
disposed- and hear to the minutest detail all

that his ears could gather if he were 8'ptually'
present at the services.} . ;
A complete historical survey would merely be a list
of radio pioneers in the field and would not add to this
study. The important-aspect, however, is the rapid
grow~h
that religious broadcasting experienced during the 30s and
40s. It began with individuals such as Paul Rader, and
Charles Fuller who entered religious broadcasting as
individuals and later retired leaving religious programs
that are still being broadcast today. For example Charles
Fuller was the founder of the "Old Fashioned Revival Hour"
in 1937. While the program is now called "The Joyful; Sound,"
i 4
it is heard on more than 143 stations around the world.
An example of one of the more powerful religious radio
networks which developed out of the early days of broad­
casting is the Moody Radio Network. Its first broadcast was
_2 Ibid,. p. 62.
3"The Gospel By Wireless,· Literarx Digest, February
4, 1922, p. 32.
4 Sidell, p. 69.