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Street, John 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9650-063X
(2019)
What is Donald Trump?: Forms of 'celebrity' in celebrity politics.
Political Studies Review, 17 (1).
pp. 3-13.
ISSN 1478-9299
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Abstract
It is widely assumed that Donald Trump is a ‘celebrity politician’, and that he has cashed in his success on the reality show The Apprentice to secure political credibility and attention. In this respect he fits what Matthew Wood et al (2016) have labelled the ‘superstar celebrity politician’. This characterisation is the latest in a number of refinements to the definition and understanding of the celebrity politician. While this is a helpful move, I want to suggest that it might overlook one key dimension of the phenomenon. Definitions of the celebrity politician tend to focus on the source of their ‘celebrity’ – how they became famous, rather than on how they act out their celebrity role. This latter dimension features in media coverage, where journalists and commentators borrow from showbusiness to describe politics, but is less often analysed in the political science literature. It matters because, I want to suggest, celebrity politicians like Trump act as stars, whether of reality television, rock music or film. They do not just resemble stars; they are them. This is evident in how they are represented, how they perform and how their ‘fans’ respond to them. It is also symptomatic of wider changes in the conduct and form of the contemporary, mediatised political realm.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | donald trump,celebrity politics,populism,mediatisation |
| Faculty \ School: | Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies |
| UEA Research Groups: | Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Political, Social and International Studies Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Cultural Politics, Communications & Media Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Policy & Politics Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Centres > Centre for Competition Policy |
| Related URLs: | |
| Depositing User: | Pure Connector |
| Date Deposited: | 10 May 2018 14:30 |
| Last Modified: | 21 Jul 2023 09:49 |
| URI: | https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/67025 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/1478929918772995 |
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