Erschienen in:Higher School of Economics Research Paper ; No. WP BRP 87/PS/2022
Umfang:
1 Online-Ressource (27 p)
Sprache:
Englisch
DOI:
10.2139/ssrn.4121825
Identifikator:
Entstehung:
Anmerkungen:
Nach Informationen von SSRN wurde die ursprüngliche Fassung des Dokuments May 27, 2022 erstellt
Beschreibung:
What are the functions of conspiracy theory rhetoric used by leaders of populist movements? Whereas many scholars have demonstrated a consistent relationship between conspiracy theory beliefs and support for populist candidates, the mechanisms that explain this relationship remain under-examined. This exploratory study moves in this direction by coding conspiracy theory rhetoric in a large corpus of speeches by Donald Trump using a qualitative content analysis in order to uncover the functions of such references for forging and retaining a strong relationship with the broader populist movement. We argue that conspiracy theory rhetoric could serve both a ‘demonization’ function, for attacking and delegitimizing opponents, and a ‘mobilization’ function, that can be used to forge a more concrete ‘bloc’ of supporters. Early results point to a significant amount of evidence of demonizing functions in Trump’s rhetoric, such as attacking individual politicians, stereotyping the opposing camp, and delegitimizing political institutions, as well as mobilizing functions, such as coordinating the attention of followers, and reinforcing group identity. Furthermore, conspiracy theory rhetoric of all kinds are found primarily in campaign speeches, and are nearly absent in interviews and prepared speeches, implying that Trump refers to them primarily when speaking directly to his supporters