The Populist Spectacle

By Sam Kersey, Rawan Al Sheikh and Manesi Oñate

Donald Trump’s penchant for highly personal Twitter rants have confronted our expectations of how we expect a world leader to act. Yet his behaviour is just one piece in a puzzling reality. Populist leaders are becoming astute manipulators of contemporary media, creating a spectacle in order to give their divisive views a platform.

Understanding what a “populist leader” is

The meaning of the term ‘populist’ is often contested, and can be used to encompass a variety of political ideologies. The clearest definition we found for a ‘populist leader’ was provided by Encyclopedia Britannica.

Interactive Game: Digital Dilemma

How would you react to populist voices online? Play it your way and discover how effective your methods are in this interactive game. Click the image below to play!

PS: Once you are in the game, use the ‘Present’ button for the full immersive experience.

How populist leaders use exaggeration

Here is an example of Donald Trump using his personal Twitter account in order to blame Mexican immigrants for issues in the US.

Trump writes in a highly charged and personal style. He uses terminology which aims to provoke an emotive response, such as ‘drugs’, ‘crime’ and ‘money’. He also uses nonspecific statistical terms, aka ‘billions of dollars’, in order to create fear. An ‘us vs them’ scenario is perpetuated.

In the United Kingdom, the ‘Leave’ campaign managed to convince 52% of British voters that it was worth cutting ties with the European Union.

These Brexit ‘battle buses’ incentivised the public to vote ‘Leave’ by claiming that “£350 million a week” of EU funding could be better spent on the NHS.

The ‘Leave’ campaign presented the EU as an unpatriotic institution which threatens the existence of free NHS healthcare. The message pushed by these 'battle buses' generated plenty of attention, including these reactions on Twitter:

The figure “£350 million a week” was widely debunked by fact checkers as an exaggeration. Even Nigel Farage, UK Independence Party leader throughout the campaign, branded its use ‘a mistake’.

Yet by this time, the campaign to leave the EU had already achieved its goal.

Here, Nigel Farage has endorsed a physical banner and extended its impact through Twitter.

This method maximises the reach and effect of his imagery. The banner shows a sizeable queue of non-white faces. Its purpose is to portray immigration as a problem for the UK, with blame for this scenario being pointed at the EU.

Providing a Response

It is not worth allowing the exaggerated viewpoints which populist leaders post to simply go uncontested. Populist views pander to the fear and enthusiasm of the public, and provide an effective threat to the stability of nations.

Providing a carefully planned response is the most effective method of making a change.

Countering Fiction with Fact

If someone is posting inaccurate information, it is time to counter the fiction with fact. Select sources you can trust and pull out some interesting information to back up your points with. Using this method, your argument can start to gain credibility.

Engaging in Open and Respectful Dialogue

It is important to show thoughtfulness in your dialogue with people who hold views you don’t necessarily agree with. Make it clear that you are at acknowledging different points of view. In many situations, this is an infallible approach.

At worst, the other party responds badly and you will publicly appear to have been on the side of reason. At best, you will open up a meaningful discussion which helps the other party understand how you think. Perhaps you might learn something too!

Image Sources:

Donald Trump Icon and Scratching Head Icon: Remixed from an image purchased on IconFinder.

Hand Holding Question Mark Icon created by Gregor Cesnar for The Noun

Tick Icon created by ‘i con’ for The Noun Project

Speech Bubbles Icon created by Nicholas Vicent for The Noun Project

Handshake Icon created by ‘Darin S’ for The Noun Project

Vault Boy Icon: Character designed by Bethesda Softworks for the Fallout game series.