This cartoon plays on the unfairness of American health care by satirizing the pharmaceutical industry’s claim that high drug prices are driven by “research” by exposing how that “research” includes not just new drug development but also marketing, advertising, lobbying, and influencing doctors and politicians. While the figure in the cartoon tries to frame it as a scientific commitment, the visual breakdown shows how a large portion of the cost is allocated to activities that focus on public and political manipulation than actually researching new medicine

This cartoon relates well to the chapter’s point research’s intended purposes. In the chapter, it points out that research should serve a clear and meaningful purpose, whether it’s to increase understanding, predict behavior, or create social change. In contrast, the cartoon suggests that the pharmaceutical industry’s “research” serves corporate goals, not societal ones. Instead of using research to drive positive change or improve communication (like in health campaigns), the cartoon reveals how research can be co-opted to justify exploitation under the guise of innovation.

Personally, I experienced this when a family member had to choose between two toothpastes—one brand-name and one generic. 9 out of 10 doctor strongly recommended the more expensive one, even though research showed both were equally effective. It made me question whether we were being influenced by science or by marketing dressed up as research.

In this cartoon, it shows a grandfather listing behavioral rules to his grandson, in case he gets stopped by the police. This cartoon relates deeply to the Human Rules Theory described in the chapter 5. The list includes warnings like “don’t run,” “don’t put your hands in your pocket,” and “don’t ride around with a broken taillight.” Even though these are not formal laws, they’re rules born out of lived experience. This can also be interpreted as the troubling experience with police brutality, especially within the Black community, where interactions with law enforcement can be even more dangerous compared to others. Human Rules Theory explains that such rules are not universally fixed, but socially constructed, culturally specific, and dynamic, shaped by real-world experience and social systems.

The cartoon further illustrates how certain groups live by following unwritten social rules. While these rules don’t carry legal consequences if broken, unlike law, they can still result in severe, even fatal, outcomes due to how systems of authority interpret those actions. This adds a deeper layer of urgency and emotional weight to the theory.

In my experience, I remember my mom giving me a similar talk before I got my driver’s license. She told me to always keep both hands visible during traffic stops and speak calmly, even if I felt nervous. At the time, I thought she was overreacting, but now I realize she was trying to prepare me, a young adult who just got his license and is driving a sports car, for a system that doesn’t treat everyone equally, where rules are applied differently depending on who you are.

In the cartoon ,“The Evolution of Pop Culture Scapegoats”, it talked about the ideas in Chapter 8 about how popular culture is often misunderstood and unfairly blamed for societal issues. Within the comic’s depiction, it highlights how society has shifted from blaming rock musicians like Marilyn Manson for tragedies like the Columbine shooting, a school-shooting incident, while also blaming internet creations like Slender Man for violent behavior. This reflects chapter 8’s idea that popular culture doesn’t need to be consumed by everyone to be influential—it’s embedded enough in society that people are familiar with it and often react strongly, especially when tragedy strikes. The cartoon also shows how politicians and media figures sometimes simplify complex social issues by pointing fingers at pop culture rather than addressing root causes like mental health or social isolation.

I remember growing up that I always enjoyed playing Grand Theft Auto (GTA).In that video game, you act as a criminal and are allowed to do illegal stuff. A few years ago, GTA was blamed for promoting violence among teens and several school shootings as well. As someone who grew up playing video games with friends, I found it frustrating that the media never talked about the benefits of playing video games and never pointed out the hypocrisy in their argument. For us gamers, video games was just a way to connect and unwind. This made me realize how easily misunderstood pop culture can be by those who aren’t part of it, and how dangerous that misunderstanding can become when it shapes public opinion or policy.

This cartoon’s message and content relates very well with the ethical concerns and organizational challenges discussed in Chapter 11. This cartoon showcases a manager proudly stating, “We run a very ethical company here. Anything unethical is outsourced,”. While humorous, the cartoon underscores a troubling reality. Many organizations in the real world maintain a superficial image of integrity while displacing unethical responsibilities to third parties. This also ties into how the chapter said most Fortune 500 companies had committed some sort of unethical scandal. This directly ties into the chapter’s focus on how organizations often struggle with ethical communication and responsibility, especially under the pressures of capitalism and competition.

In the addition, the chapter emphasizes that ethics in communication involve more than legality or public image and that they require honesty, justice, and a commitment to doing no harm. The cartoon mocks this ideal by showing how some companies attempt to appear ethical without practicing ethical behavior.

Personally, I’’ve been under a similar organization before. During one of my recent summers, I worked in a canvassing company, where they used a legal loophole to require me to do 50 hours of work while paying me for 35 hours of work. Overall, this chapter is sending a message that ethical communication must be genuine and integrated throughout the organization, not outsourced or avoided.

In the cartoon, it showcases a lot related to the concepts about group communication in Chapter 10. The cartoon is of a business meeting where someone says, “Benson, will you stop trying to dominate the meeting,” toward someone who is holding a huge microphone. This cartoon relates closely to concepts from the chapter because it explains that effective group communication requires equal participation, active listening, and balanced leadership. In this image, Benson appears to be taking over the conversation, likely ignoring group dynamics and stifling collaboration. This highlights one of the factors mentioned in the chapter -power and power-over. When a single person controls the flow of discussion by exerting dominance, it disrupts group synergy, discourages input from others, weakens decision-making, and harms the group relationship.
Personally, I always see this happen during class debates, whereas there is always that one person who always raises their hand and speak loudly to the class, while showing an angry expression on their face. This often leads to frustration, silence from quieter members, and a less effective debate/discussion. The cartoon uses humor to show how such behavior is noticed and sometimes called out, which is necessary for maintaining group balance. Overall, the cartoon teaches how group communication requires respect and fair discussion by members of the group.

This cartoon effectively captures many of the key points discussed in Chapter 13 of the book. The content humorously exaggerates a real issue discussed in the chapter about how communication reinforces gender norms. In the image, a pregnant woman angrily accuses a man of being a “male-identifiable oppressor” simply for asking if her baby is a boy or girl. Even though the conversation is somehow exaggerated, the exaggeration is used to reflect concerns about how society imposes gender roles even before birth. The chapter explains that gender is not purely biological but is constructed and reinforced through language and daily interactions.
I’ve personally experienced how assumptions based on gender shape the way people speak to me or expect me to behave. For example, when I order a strawberry acai refresher at Starbucks instead of an espresso, I would get called ‘ladylike’ by some of my peers. These labels, though subtle, carry social expectations that define how we are supposed to act based on our perceived gender. This cartoon and the reading both highlight the current cultural norms around gender identification and how important it is to be aware of the messages we send in spite of this culture, and how language can either reinforce or challenge cultural gender norms.

In chapter 12, it delves into communication across people from different cultural backgrounds. In this cartoon, it shows people from various cultural backgrounds and race greeting each other in different languages, such as “Hola,” “Hello,” and “Namaste”. It directly relates to the chapter’s explanation of different languages used by different people across the globe to communicate. The chapter emphasizes that language is not only a tool for communication but also a reflection of cultural values, worldviews, and group identity. In addition, the cartoon highlights how each person brings their language and culture into the interaction, yet all are trying to communicate the same message and greeting. The chapter’s section on “Language and Culture” explains that effective intercultural communication begins with recognizing and respecting linguistic diversity. This cartoon reinforces that idea by illustrating a multilingual greeting exchange, reminding us that intercultural competence involves acknowledging differences while finding common ground.

This chapter and cartoon can be directly related to my everyday life, as I experience cultural differences all the time. In my college, there are plenty of international students from across the world. Just by being curious and understanding different cultural norms for eye contact and personal space, has helped me broaden my understanding about the world and avoid misunderstandings.

In this cartoon, it highlights the importance of the right medium to establish a great interpersonal relationship. Chapter 9 mentions that successful interpersonal communication comes from selecting the right medium based on message complexity and relationship dynamics. Richer channels—such as face-to-face conversation and phone call—offer immediate feedback, tone, and nonverbal cues, in which the parties can connect better. In the cartoon, it shows that the worker has angered the manager by selecting the right medium to communicate, which is face-to-face, when the manager shows reluctance to speak directly, preferring the comfort and convenience of text. The cartoon pokes fun at how low-richness channels might limit nuance, misrepresent meaning, or reduce communication authenticity, and individuals should consider the relationship dynamic and information before choosing the right medium.


In my workplace, this resonates strongly. I once had to deliver sensitive feedback about questions I had about Excel to my supervisor. Initially, I considered emailing back and forth, but after the annoyance that would incur my supervisor, I opted for a video call. The visual cues, tone of voice, and real-time exchange helped us clarify expectations and maintain rapport—something text alone would never have achieved. Like the cartoon, it highlighted how certain conversations simply deserve richer channels to preserve clarity and empathy.

In this cartoon, it depicts a great example of what non-verbal communication entails and what kinesics means as a form of communication. Within the cartoon, the person on the right, the speaker, had just concluded his speech and was looking for input on his speech. While the audience didn’t say a word about his performance and speech, different audience had already shown their thoughts and opinions about the speech through their body language. For example, one is asleep, another yawns, and a third raises a hand showing his intention to ask a question. To add more to the cartoon, even though the speaker just gave a lecture about non-verbal communication, he fails to read them the audience. This reflects the chapter’s emphasis on how gestures, facial expressions, and posture convey powerful messages, sometimes more honestly than words at times.

This cartoon relates a lot to my work experience. In my work and school experience, especially during meetings or project presentations, I’ve seen how nonverbal feedback and body language, like eye contact, fidgeting, or nodding, relays their interest, confusion, or boredom toward the material I am conveying. From understanding each and every one of the non-verbal communications it signifies whether or not I need to further improve in my speech and presentations. This cartoon reminded me that being aware of nonverbal responses is just as important as delivering content. The cartoon humorously highlights how overlooking body language can lead to communication failures, even among experts.

This cartoon is a great representation of what symbol means in Chapter 2. In the cartoon, it showcases text messages between a female and the other person. During the message, the sender communicate only with emojis while the female sends short text messages, which serve as symbolic representations of thoughts, emotions, and intentions. Within the chapter, a symbol is a verbal communication that is arbitrary, ambiguous, and abstract. This cartoon exaggerates the ambiguous element of the symbol by having a punch line, where the sender is a literal emoji instead of a person, showcasing how symbols can be ambiguous and interpreted differently by different people, since the female thought of it as a way for the sender to showcase thought and emotion, while in truth the sender sends the emoji because he is actually an emoji.

This cartoon reflects my own experience with texting and online communication. For example, everyone has their interpretation of different emojis. When texting friends, some of them interpret the two hands together emojis as praying, while others see it as a high-five. Similarly, at work, messages with emojis or brief replies can easily be misinterpreted. The cartoon illustrates how digital symbols can oversimplify or distort communication, echoing key points from the chapter.