The Mass Media 's Representation Of Campaign Discourse

The media has always played an important role in the President’s relationship with the public, but just what kind of affect does it really have on the executive office? The first televised presidential debate in 1960 between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon marked the beginning of a new era – the inaugural shift of the media’s role in politics. Since that time, the media has continued to transform the way the president is perceived by the public through print, broadcast, and more recently, social media. All of said outlets have played vital roles in not only a president’s campaign, but also in their presidency and likability throughout their time in office. While the White House is still the source of most presidential news, the media are the shapers of the story and can frame it pretty much any way they want. There used to be limits on certain issues or realms of the presidency that were to remain untouched, however, first amendment freedoms take precedence over almost any restriction the government could try to place on the media. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the media and the president throughout recent years, looking briefly into the past to establish the scale of the dramatic change, and to study their reciprocal connection of how each utilizes the other.

With the impending election looming closer and closer, the approach of the presidential throne seems to elicit a plethora of opinions on who is the most viable candidate. However, the candidate that has caused controversy at every angle possible is none other than Donald Trump. Famous for his extreme affluence and most notably his TV drama, The Apprentice, President-elect Donald Trump has integrated his unctuous persona into his campaign. The San Diego Union Tribune’s article on Donald Trump, “…Great Power and Greater Irresponsibility”, introduces us with the possibility that Donald Trump is not the “Make America Great American” man he claims to be, and in fact he is the exact opposite. While for some Americans, his aversion to political correctness is admirable and induces a strong support; many are adverse to his social conduct and view his idiosyncrasies polar to the fabric of the Constitution. The article brings forth a target audience of both non-supporters and supporters alike in grave attempt to eradicate this supposed allure of Trump.

As a barely twenty-year-old junior at a sheltered private college, I have to confess that it’s been very hard to conceptualize and realize the severity of the 2016 election. What started off as a race of what seemed like a million different candidates, the polls quickly zoned in on two candidates we could’ve never predicted to be the voting citizens’ final choice. It’s both overwhelming, and simple, deceitful, and truthful – this election seems to be full of contradictions and half truths, and the opaque nature of a once seemingly transparent media complicates matters further in an election that seems convoluted even on paper. Along with the legislative branch, the media itself has turned into a monster we never thought we’d have to wrangle. We are surrounded by propaganda, caricatures, and cartoons everywhere we turn, especially in print media like

The public have watched in suspended horror, or elation, depending on your perspective, how Donald J. Trump has turned the presidential primaries into a reality TV show. With his background as a reality producer and star, he has reached into his repertoire of gimmicks to unleash campaign tactics unseen in recent memory. Each and every night in the news, we are treated to his childish antics of name calling, insults to his colleagues and opponents, blaming and vilifying minority communities for the ills of the country and threatening to abolish the fourteenth amendment of the constitution. All of this happens as majority of the nation’s elite media outlets sits on the sideline, sometimes cheering him on.

"You don 't get the chance to make America great by getting rid of everything that made America great,” Stated by Hillary Clinton during her campaign rally in St. Louis, Missouri to attack candidate Donald Trump from his previous diverse rhetoric. Political Rhetoric has been very popular in today’s society. Politics use this as a platform to criticize other candidates about important points that are essential to the United States and its citizens. Not only does others believe that political rhetoric is out of control but it is a negative form of art. During election time, the media and the internet are critical for candidates because it gives them easy access to the younger audience. Although social media is enormous in today’s society, this is the best way for young voters to make their voices heard. Scott Keeter a research analyst and exit poll analyst for NBS News stated that “Young voters have given the Democratic Party a majority of their votes, and for all three cycles they have been the party’s most supportive age group” (Keeter, 1). According to U.S. Census Bureau over the course of time the rate of younger voters “Dropped from 50.9% percent in 1964 to 38.0 percent in 2012” (U.S. Census Bureau, 2).However, the media continue to evolve with modern society. I believe that rhetoric such as visual political rhetoric helps the youth to get more involved with the political arguments while being educated and entertained at the same time.

The elections of 2016 are a portrayal of both unrest and aspiration for the political future of the United States of America. The 2016 elections are possibly both unorthodox and most controversial. Spurred through social media, this year’s elections are grabbing everyone’s attention, both globally and nationally. Out of the twenty three candidates, only two remain: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump, specifically, has shocked the citizens of USA with his blunt and piercing opinions. Because of his bold character, he remains a recognizable political figure. Though his statements may not seem to be premeditated, his thoughts are original and most importantly, supported with evidence and logic.

In lieu of the recent election, wherein Republican candidate Donald Trump ran against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, it is wholly irrefutable to deny the significance of television and media in propelling the elections into a precedent of informal undertones, as the election itself marked uncharacterized, incomprehensibly belligerent rhetoric. In the eyes of public scrutiny, the election proved holistically to be that which Americans chose between the “lesser evil”--Trump: the demagogue, known to bolster a corrupt financial agenda along with bigoted convictions versus Clinton: the liar who wrongfully used a private email server to handle official emails while Secretary of State and allegedly perjured under oath, yet who so easily evaded punitive ramifications.

The politic arena is a media circus (entertainment) because of the way the Donald Trump from the Republican Party has been behaving. Trump’s successes throughout the caucuses have been accomplished after a series of exchanging insults. Trump and Clinton, known for their disrespectful remarks, have turned the debates into a level of disrespect, questioning the future of America. The politic arena is no longer about politics and policies, but about who made the biggest comeback. The media has contributed to this circus attraction by giving these remarks the spotlight. By reflecting on the media, Trump has been able to target every audience through different tactics. These candidates say they want the best for America. However, their focus on competition has diminished the true meaning of becoming

Although enjoying high-name recognition for setting the tone of governmental organization, Trump’s example is poor at best. In lamentably gaining status as a celebrity, the biggest and best-known personality, he shifts from the coverage of serious issues by a publicly demanded obsession: “Trump has received far more media attention than any other Republican. Journalists and campaigns have, understandably, been reluctant to treat him as a serious candidate. The Huffington Post, for instance, decided it would cover him in the entertainment section” (Cohn). In essence, Trump has only deterred from political establishment and has dominated the press as a source of amusement. While we may look to the incumbent President for a serious global leader, perhaps it is inevitable that we may not find one. Instead, our misguided expectations must be adapted for the accurate role of Donald Trump: provoking entertainment that thrives on the reactions of its

Craig Allen Smith’s 2015 update of Presidential Campaign Communication details every aspect of a Presidential campaign from start to finish. Taking into account the trialogue between campaigners, reporters, and citizens, the roles each of them play differ, but come down to the citizen. The citizen is exposed to campaign ads, candidate appearances while they try and weed through the information in order to make a decision on their political beliefs. Campaigners have a different agenda because they most surface, gain their parties nomination, bring the party together of the primary season, and then go on to win the electoral college with 270 votes or more. The third and final part of this ‘trialogue’ are the reporters, which can be on any platform that his an audience.

The 2016 United States presidential election will go down as one of the most memorable in history. Its first debate, which drew 84 million viewers, went down as the second most-watched television event of the year, behind only Super Bowl 50. Furthermore, the debate dwarfed its most popular counterpart from 2012, beating it out by over 15 million viewers. The primary reason for this cycle’s incredible popularity comes from its brash, abrasive, demagogic candidate, Donald Trump. While most polls currently give his opponent, Hillary Clinton, the edge in winning the presidency, Trump remains extremely close to her in support. The Trump campaign’s efficacy comes as a surprise, given his 60% unfavorability ratings, the highest of any presidential

We arrive at our next author, Nora Young, who discusses the delights and damage of digital life. She believes people are moving from living life as a normal person into becoming your digital persona. “Digital Technology takes us out of where we are” (Young, pg. 85). That we are moving our attitudes along the Elaboration Likelihood Model from more central beings into peripheral. Basically, voters are not dissecting or understanding more information and are beginning to blur the details and not care. With Trump, he seems to be this caricature of the stereotypical white supremacist & sexist but while it’s so exaggerated, it is not a parody. However, regular people want to become spectacles so they keep videos/photos of special places/messages. They try to participate in this media narrative by spreading/acting out ill though out racial messages to gain attention to become a part of the spectacle as Debord explained earlier. Trump manages to utilize twitter to its best ability to still manipulate his constituents by enticing them into a false reality of

On January 28th, Donald Trump refused to attend the Fox News Republican debate as a result of his ongoing feud with anchor Meghan Kelly. Interestingly enough, Trump´s call damaged Fox, more than it hurt his campaign. The truth is, the media needs Trump and vice versa. Trump is an entertainer, and news organizations can only thrive when they have high ratings and high readership. The problem arises when the discussion in the media is

In campaigning, media coverage plays a large role for candidates. They use the media to make their name heard and image seen. “Nearly everything a candidate does is geared toward the media, especially television” (Stuckey, 1999, p. 99) Candidates make appearances on talk shows,

In the year of a presidential election the media is flooded with an unhealthy amount of news about almost every facet of the candidate’s life. This information is presented in different lights to hungry audiences, all of those who wish to either see the best or worst of the potential President. Each individual member of this audience belongs to a different mindset and has their own background knowledge associated with the news they are consuming. Although people read the news with different intent and expected gain of knowledge, they all get the same amount of information.