Trump is a Dangerous Media Mastermind - Essay Example

Throughout the world, media is a critical aspect that leaders use to spread their views and agendas. Like other countries, President Trump is required to update the country using different media channels. (Schivinski & Dabrowski, 2016) However, his communication has been criticized for engaging in actions that appear to discriminate in particular groups. The article, Trump is a Dangerous Media Mastermind, by Julian Zelizer, discusses how Trump uses media to communicate his agenda. The lack of a better connection between the president and reporters has forced him to shift to other platforms. As a way of enhancing his communication, Trump relies more on social media, Twitter, and a 24-hour political news platform (Zelizer, 2019). The approach has assisted him in communicating his political message to a large number of people across the country. However, Trump has been criticized for spreading inciting and provoking messages using social media. Leaders such as President Bill Clinton used media to advertise various approaches, such as health insurance (Zelizer, 2019). However, the application of online communication media has triggered more arguments regarding their coverage. Zelizer (2019) demonstrates that these platforms create a powerful channel that retains the information for many years. Due to its popularity, media is a powerful weapon that can promote and demote (Macnamara & Zerfass, 2012). As such, Trump’s application of modern media should not be underestimated as it reaches a large number of people across the country (Zelizer, 2019). The essay analysis the article by reviewing how the author uses ethos, pathos, and logos in illustrating the impact of media in the Trump administration.

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Ethos

Ethically, media has been a crucial aspect of modern society. People are using the platform to improve their living due to its conceptual idea-sharing. In the article, Zelizer (2019) uses ethos to illustrate the impact of Trump using modern media. In particular, Zelizer (2019) illustrates that a lack of a better understanding of modern media may trigger social conflict. As such, the continuous application of online platforms as a means of communication has triggered division in society. Zelizer (2019) demonstrates that the president has severally used messages that promote racism. The approach has highly affected the connection between different ethical groups. Usually, the president is the symbol of unity, and the kind of action they engage in should be driven by their position (Macnamara & Zerfass, 2012). In this case, the author tries to illustrate how the application of media raises questions about Trump’s administration. For instance, “Since Trump declared his candidacy, so many reporters have endeavored to call out the President when he lies or distorts the facts” (Zelizer, 2019). This shows how a large number of people are dissatisfied with how Trump conveys his message. As such, some messages are associated with incitement, which has triggered a division between his supporters and opponents (Zelizer, 2019). Previously, leaders such as Bill Clinton, who have used the media to influence a particular policy has triggered more rival than support (Zelizer, 2019).

Pathos

The content in the article depicts several incidents that are associated with emotions, thus affecting the connection between different groups. At the beginning of the article, the author illustrates how Trump has severally broken the heart of women, especially when he sends them back (Zelizer, 2019). The author says, “…saying that congresswomen Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib should "go back" to the "broken and crime-infested places from which they came" (Zelizer, 2019). In this case, the author shows how Trump has a negative perception of females from a particular area. For many years, the world has been striving and fighting for gender equality. Therefore, giving women top positions is a way of empowering them. Leaders are required to show their support by encouraging women from different areas to vie for top positions (Macnamara & Zerfass, 2012). Embracing racism is a critical aspect that emotionally affects minority groups. Therefore, having a negative attitude toward women is a critical aspect that affects Trump’s administration (Zelizer, 2019). Additionally, the author shows how citizens are emotionally affected when they are forced to pay insurance coverage through the mandatory policy (Zelizer, 2019). The poor individuals who are striving to support their living are the most affected group (Meikle, 2016). The poor application of media has hindered leaders from understanding the challenges the lower class individuals are facing. The approach hinders their ability to improve their life.

Logos.

As a way of supporting the notions in the article, the author uses several logical facts and examples regarding the media. From the 19th century, media such as television have been crucial aspects leaders use to express their agendas and policies (Zelizer, 2019). The author says, “In 1964, President Lyndon Johnson's campaign team released a television spot suggesting that his opponent, Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater, would trigger a nuclear war” (Zelizer, 2019). The approach illustrates the conceptual application of television by the president when communicating various agendas. Through the ad, people were informed about the effect of nuclear that the opponent was using to fight the president (Schivinski & Dabrowski, 2016). Additionally, the author shows various ways President Bill Clinton use media to inform people about the health plan (Zelizer, 2019). Despite the effectiveness of media, there were several incidents that were not received positively. The author says, “…health care plan in 1993 and 1994, the Health Insurance Industry of America released a blistering ad that featured a white suburban couple… this plan forces us to buy our insurance…” (Zelizer, 2019). In this case, society did not receive messages in a positive way. Therefore, Trump is not the first president to experience negative reactions regarding the application of media (Zelizer, 2019). The application of supportive ideas helps to illustrate the historical perception of the use of modern media (Macnamara & Zerfass, 2012).

Conclusion.

The author has used different approaches to illustrate the impact of media in the Trump administration. Based on the content, I agree with the author that the application of social media in communicating may create more conflicts. The application of facts to support the danger of media has highly improved the quality of work. As a way of improving the quality of the article, the author needs to provide real facts about the Trump application of social media. The strategy may be accompanied by people’s replies. Additionally, there I a need to introduce references at the end of the writing. References may give readers a clear picture of where the facts used were borrowed. The strategy will impact the reader to develop a positive approach toward the content in the article. Despite the content presented by Zelizer, the article is not fit for academic writing. Most of the information presented by the author has not been supported by facts. As a way of supporting ideas, it is crucial to engage references and in-text citations throughout the article.

References

Macnamara, J., & Zerfass, A. (2012). Social media communication in organizations: The challenges of balancing openness, strategy, and management. International Journal of Strategic Communication, 6(4), 287-308. https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents

Meikle, G. (2016). Social media: Communication, sharing, and visibility. Routledge.

Schivinski, B., & Dabrowski, D. (2016). The effect of social media communication on consumer perceptions of brands. Journal of Marketing Communications, 22(2), 189-214. https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/19939/1/19939.pdf.

Zelizer, J. (2019). Trump is a dangerous media mastermind. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2019/07/21/opinions/trump-racist-tweet-mastery-media-coverage-zelizer/index.html.