The purpose of this chapter is to explore audience as a key concept in rhetorical studies. I trace the development of audience across the history of rhetorical studies to highlight the difference between audience in rhetorical studies and audience in public conversations. I then I use the rhetoric of Peter McIndoe and the satirical Birds Aren’t Real movement to illustrate how a discrete Gen-X audience is draw into community by the oscillating potency of a provocative public message and an appropriate social and historical context, before closing with the methodological opportunities and ethical challenges of using audience as a tool for deft criticism.