What is Trump?:Forms of 'celebrity' in celebrity politics

Street, John ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9650-063X (2017) What is Trump?:Forms of 'celebrity' in celebrity politics. In: Political Studies Association Conference, 2017-04-10 - 2017-04-12, Strathclyde University.

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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 awareness. And 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, but is less often analysed in the political science literature. My argument is that it warrants more attention. Celebrity politicians like Trump act as rock or film stars; they do not just resemble them.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
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
Depositing User: Pure Connector
Date Deposited: 12 Apr 2017 05:13
Last Modified: 21 Jul 2023 10:01
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/63237
DOI:

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