Decoding Racist Language in Technical Writing
July 29, 2021
Yesterday’s Marketplace broadcast included a story that demonstrates the power of racist coding in less than 2.5 minutes. “Can changing home appraisal language help close the wealth gap?” examines how the word choice in home appraisals, which are essentially technical descriptions, communicates who lives in a neighborhood and impacts the value assigned to homes.
After listening to this story, technical writing students can look for similar coded language in other documents:
- How are workplace locations described in job ads?
- How are possible building sites described in proposals?
- What descriptive words and phrases are used in incident reports?
These conversations can move beyond the language used to describe places to many other kinds of technical writing as well:
- What coded language do you find in job ads? How is the kind of person wanted for the position described?
- How are potential contractors described in RFPs and applicant analysis?
- Is coded language used in dress codes or social media guidelines?
- Does coded language appear in employee evaluation documents?
- How are the words professional and professionalism used to communication information about race?
Listen to the story below or on the Marketplace website: