Hypoxemia

There is an article in the September 2009 issue of USHPA's Hang Gliding & Paragliding magazine titled "Stinkin' High". This article is written by Boyd Hehn with the ultimate intent of persuading free flight pilots to avoid hypoxemia. The audience for this article is actually pretty small. There are less than twenty thousand hang and paraglider pilots in the USA. Of these twenty thousand, probably less than half are pilots who fly in conditions that would expose them to hypoxemia. So, Dr. Hehn's article is ideally written to an audience of a few thousand pilots. These pilots come from a large variety of backgrounds and experiences. The challenge of convincing people to avoid hypoxemia might seem simple enough, but this audience has many factors to consider when solving this risk: equipment weight, cost, cumbersomeness and maintenance. Another solution is to avoid high altitudes. It can be a tough sell since the use of an expensive oxygen system may only be needed on rare occasions, and good altitude gains are sporadic enough that no pilot wants to stop climbing because of a potential lack of oxygen.

In his introduction to "Stinkin' High", Dr. Hehn uses "we" extensively to appeal to this audience and build some ethos. He is telling his audience that he relates to them on this topic. As we see at the end of the article, Dr. Hehn has experience in flying, and thus his appropriate use of "we" to align himself with the audience. This pacifies his readers by letting them know he understands their culture, instead of preaching to them as a physician. He happens to be a Pulmonologist, a fact that is kept obscured until the end of the article. His credit for writing the article lists him only as "Boyd Hehn". His credibilty is made evident as he outlines the science behind hypoxemia, but the actual notation of him being a physician is saved until the end, when his audience's opinion has already been fully affected. He is writing primarily as a fellow pilot, and secondarily as a physician.

Another interesting approach that the author uses is his reference to altitude in the first paragraph. He says "...pilots aspire to altitude.", and "(Altitude) offers 'safety' for aerobatics". These are statements that especially appeal to pilots. It is counter-intuitive for most people to hear that altitude offers safety, but pilots know this from experience. The author even puts "safety" in quotes to emphasize the esoteric nature of this statement. Altitude offers more time to react to collapses or problems that occur in flight. By demonstrating his knowledge of this inside information, he gains the audience's confidence.

Dr. Hehn's next strategy to win his audience's interest and consent, is to include a narrative by Matt Beechinor. Matt is something of an icon in the world of free flight. His story is intended to show the audience that no one is immune to the risks of hypoxemia, and that its onset can be subtle, even unnoticed. Matt's story has a different language to it than Dr. Hehn's portion of the article. It appeals more to the common attitude of guarded recklessness found among many pilots who fly cross-country. Whereas Dr. Hehn writes in a technical verse (maybe even too technical at times, given his audience), Matt writes in a casual style more familiar to most pilots. This narrative likely develops a good bit of commonality with the bulk of the audience, but Dr. Hehn was worried that he had yet to win their hearts as he said, "Instead of dismissing Matt's story as an isolated incident, we suggest reading Will Gadd's post." Will Gadd is another icon in free flight (and other extreme sports). Dr. Hehn then offers a good perspective of the nature of his audience when he states, "We suspect that more pilots have experienced the effects of severe hypoxemia than would care to admit." This is, of course, implying that his audience is comprised of pilots who see their susceptibility to hypoxemia, while flying high, as a weakness. They might prefer to ignore the issue in lieu of admitting that they can't handle their altitude.

Dr. Hehn moves to a good bit of logos next, providing ample scientific data and argument to convince even the most resistant pilot that his brain will fail without adequate oxygen. More important than the actual evidence however, is the transition that he makes from pilot to scientist. This furthers his credibility with his audience. He has appealed to them on a personal level as a pilot, inserted a narrative on the topic from one of their idols, and finally brings the science behind the argument to the table. It is an effective persuasion.