Lester Bangs

Since my essay was about a public controversy, I thought it kind of fitting to write about a rhetoric idea from it that I did not cover in my paper. My essay was about Lester Bangs’ harsh announcement of Punk groupie Nancy Spungen’s death. In its duration I went over kairos, audience, and constraints, but did not explain the logos that made Bangs the ideal writer for this piece.

            Lester Bangs was a music journalist that is most known for writing for magazines like Rolling Stone or Creem (Punk Magazine).  When Spungen was killed, the Punk movement was still relatively new and had not developed a following outside of fellow Punks. (In a nutshell, a Punk is one who deviates from social norms). Thus, the public was not accepting of Punk music, Punk musicians, or the movement itself.

            Lester Bangs would have made for an ideal bridge between the two communities if only he had been able to remain impartial.  For he was known for his music savvy so therefore he could inform the populace, but was not a musician so therefore the mass public could relate to him.

            However, (as I mentioned in my paper) Lester Bangs ultimately chose career advancement over objectively informing the population and thus the tension between the Punks and their oppressors only intensified.