MEMORANDUM

TO:

DR. CARLOS DEVARGAS

FROM:

RITA-MARIE BORJA

SUBJECT:

RHETORICAL ANALYSIS OF GATES ALS ICE BUCKET CHALLENGE VIDEO

DATE:

SEPTEMBER 16, 2014

CC:

RAY GONZALES

Bill Gates, an American entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist, creates a minute and thirty
second long Ice Bucket Challenge video that successfully portrays the purpose of an ALS video.
Challenged by co-founder of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg, Gates gains credibility because of the
nations expectation for him to carry out this action. Gates looks to contribute to the welfare of
others; therefore, we as a company should not hesitate to donate our time and money to this cause.
Gates self-designed structure that pours the bucket of water on his head adds a unique quality to his
video. He builds a rig to hold the water bucket so that when he pulls on the rope, the ice water is
dumped on his head. A typical ALS video consists of an individual pouring the bucket of water on
their head physically on their own or with the assistance of others. However, Gate took a different
approach through the assistance of a self-built device. Classic home videos are unoriginal in their
actions when pouring the bucket of ice water compared to Gates method of completing the
challenge. These home videos are often recorded in the spur of the moment, due to the instant panic
of only having 24 hours to complete the challenge. Many view these simple, classic home videos at
the leisure of the most common social media site, whether that is Facebook, Vine or Instagram: all
sources of media that can post videos within seconds. The amount of time it took Gates to complete
his video is unknown, but this contraption alone sets Gates ALS video apart from the ordinary
home videos. He simply did not immediately go into his backyard, said a few lines and poured a
bucket of water on his head. Instead, he had a well thought out plan of his video, which then
successfully produced a final product that isolated him from other videos. Gates also utilized slow
motion effects; the dramatic scene of a bucket of water being poured on him further implies that
there was much thought and work put into this video. Shots of his sketches, a prototype and opening
with Mark Zuckerbergs own video suggest Gates strategic planning for the layout of this video.
Time, work, and prior outlining contributed to the creation of this video and rewarded Gates with
over 20 million views on YouTube. The manner of the video is professional, brief and formal. It is
not completely serious in tone but not humorous either. Like most videos, Gates nominates three
more people: Elon Mosk, Ryan Seacrest, and Chris Anderson. Being challenged and then challenging
three other people is typical in an ALS video. He is impersonal and simply narrates through the
video, which targets a general audience: the entire nation due to his well-known name.
Gates video contrasts and compares to the typical home video in various ways. Opening with
Zuckerbergs home video allows the viewer to relate and compare to the other ALS videos they
might have seen on social media sites. These videos are typically on the grounds of the owners
home. Gates does the same by shooting his video in what seems to be in the backyard of his own
home. We can see that the scenes include the porch of a home in the background as Gates sits at a
small outdoor stool and table. The docking bay can also be part of his home because of the similar
greenery and flowers in the background. Gates owns a much nicer setting due to his rich life style.
Therefore, it compares to other videos because it is within the comfort of his property but also
contrasts because his setting is nicer than perhaps a middle class American. His creative outtake on

the designing and constructing his structure contrasts to the common method of physically pouring
the bucket of water. Gates wanted his video to be the best; therefore his video slightly strays from
the actions of other videos. Shooting from different angles, focusing of the camera on certain objects
and appropriate lighting implies the prior planning of this video. Many contributors immediately take
on the challenge when nominated, therefore shooting a quick video on a cellular device and easily
uploading it to the internet. Gates on the other hand did not take on this approach and professionally
recorded his challenge in order to maintain a sense of formality and efficiency.
Because of Gates status, the audience automatically sets him at a higher level than themselves:
socially, intellectually and financially. He is one of the richest men in the world and his credibility is
extensive. In the beginning of his video, Gates even says that he wants to carry out the challenge in a
better way (0:24-0:25), which initially sets him apart from other Ice Bucket Challenge videos. With
this statement, Gates puts all other videos below him and assures his audience that his video is the
best. The audience now not only classifies him by his title, but through his implication that this is the
finest video that they will see. Gates video is under the same classification of celebrities and
professional inventors because of the uniqueness of his video and social stance. Gates strays away
from the typical home video in order to produce an original video that sets him aside from the
others. As an inventor, he is expected to take a creative approach to the ALS video and produce an
interesting video that displays his originality. Also, as a philanthropist, not completing the challenge
would contradict his values and decrease his credibility. If Gates did not donate nor accept the
challenge, media would instantly broadcast that and before you know it, he would be on the
headlines of Yahoo News. As a company, we must take these precautions and be aware of the
consequences of not going through with the Ice Bucket Challenge. Like Gates, we want to continue
to build our credibility and add nothing but positive decisions in our name.
Standard traits of an ALS video are as follows: an introduction in which the speaker announces who
he or she was nominated by, the challenging of one to three other people and the dumping of ice
water upon themselves. These actions are displayed in a video that is more or less than a minute long.
Usually it targets one individual, but a small group of people is also acceptable as long as all nominees
are having the ice water dumped on their heads. A visual representation is an effective way to get a
message across and maintain a viewers attention, if done correctly. We do not want to bore the
viewer but intrigue them, hence Gates unique method of completing the ice bucket challenge in his
video. Millions of viewers are appealed to his video, so simple images that show the outcome of a
slightly complex structure allows a general audience to understand the process that Gates went
through to complete the challenge. Now, if this Ice Bucket challenge was done as a written article, it
would appeal to those who can read and comprehend the medium; therefore the amount of people
that the challenge can influence reduces due to the type of medium. Our nation is driven by visual
media. People look for pictures and videos that automatically allow them to understand the purpose
of a work. The effectiveness of an advertisement differs in the way it is displayed, such as television
commercial or newspaper ad. The same message may be displayed, but the one that captures a
viewers attention will vary. A television commercial effectively grabs an individual because it offers
both sound and visual representations while a newspaper ad causes them to read and personally
interpret the information. Therefore, a video is a more effective medium to portray the purpose of
an ALS video because it captures a viewer through both audio and visual effects. Furthermore, it is
an adequate type of medium when completing the ALS challenge because it is currently the most
popular and common form; awareness is primarily spread through these videos. Simple vocabulary,
unfinished thoughts and short sentences appeal to all people. From a young kindergartener to a high
school graduate to a middle aged adult, all and almost everyone will be able to comprehend the
message of Gates video. Intricate vocabulary, such as Gates giving an in-depth description of how

he designed and built the structure, would lose the audiences attention or confuse them. On the
contrary, sophisticated language might intrigue those who are familiar with construction of a similar
model, but that pertains to a much smaller audience. None the less, Gates would limit himself to
what audience his video appeals to if he were to include intricate dialogue. Gates kept his
conversation to a minimal and simple in order to effectively communicate the purpose of an ALS
video to his extensive audience.
The central purpose of an ALS Ice Bucket Challenge video still remains as a way to spread awareness
of the Lou Gehrig disease and raise funds to find a cure to this deathly illness. Because of these
videos, a new individual is informed of this dreadful disease and inspires them to contribute their
time and/or money to this cause. Many become activist without knowing by participating in
spreading the awareness and encouraging others to join the movement. Gates video completes the
purpose of an ALS video. His six second long action continues the path of raising awareness and
funds along with the millions of committed individuals. By deliberately choosing to keep dialogue at
a minimum and vocabulary simple, Gates influences the 20 million people who viewed is video.
Though Gates does not explicitly define what ALS is and how it personally affects him, he still
follows the accepted definition of what an ALS video consists of. Through this, he follows the
standards of an ALS video but still creatively makes it his own.

Work Cited
Gates, Bill. Bill Gates ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 15
Aug. 2014. Web. 25 Aug. 2014.