Corporate Language in Online Campaigning. Candidate Trump's Tweets in the 2016 Presidential Election Campaign

Table of Contents

1 Introduction

1.1 Aims of the thesis

1.2 Structure of the thesis

2 Political Context

2.1 The electoral system in the USA

2.2 Political Presidential Campaigning

2.3 Changes within Political Presidential Campaigning in thest century

2.4 The use of social media in Presidential Campaigning

3 Corporate Language

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Implementation

3.3 Trump - A Corporate World

3.4 Previous Research

4 Methodology

4.1 Method of Data Collection

4.2 Method of Data Analysis

4.3 Limitations of the Study

5 Results

5.1 Presentation of Results

5.2 Discussion of Results

6 Conclusions and Future Work

7 Bibliography

Research Objectives and Thematic Focus

This thesis examines the linguistic strategy employed during Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign to determine if "Corporate Language" was systematically utilized on Twitter to frame authenticity and emotionality. It investigates whether Trump’s speech style was a calculated editorial effort rather than purely personal expression, exploring how this influenced public perception and political campaigning in the digital era.

• The intersection of political science, marketing, and computer linguistics.
• Systematic linguistic patterns and stylometric analysis of political campaign tweets.
• The impact of social media as a primary marketing instrument in modern politics.
• The role of editorial team input in creating an "authentic" yet manufactured candidate image.
• Comparative analysis of tweeting behavior among Trump and his core campaign staff.

Excerpt from the Book

Summary of Chapters

1 Introduction: Provides the foundation of the research, outlining the study's aims regarding the analysis of Trump's Twitter usage and the hypothesis that Corporate Language was used as a strategic marketing tool.

2 Political Context: Discusses the evolution of U.S. presidential campaigning, highlighting the transition from traditional media to the digital "hypermedia" era and the rise of social media platforms.

3 Corporate Language: Defines Corporate Language as a strategic linguistic tool and examines Trump's background as a businessman, linking his deal-making rhetoric to his political communication style.

4 Methodology: Explains the quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis procedures, including the use of Twitter data and stylometric tools to examine tweet content.

5 Results: Presents the empirical findings, including the repetitive linguistic patterns, the role of specific keywords, and the involvement of campaign staff in maintaining the communication strategy.

6 Conclusions and Future Work: Synthesizes the results, confirming the presence of a systematic, editorialized linguistic strategy that prioritized emotional engagement to secure voter support.

7 Bibliography: Lists the academic literature, media reports, and internet sources referenced throughout the research.

Keywords

Twitter, Corporate Language, Social Networks, Political Campaigning, Trump, Stylometric, Content Analysis, Digital Era, Authenticity, Framing, Sentiment Analysis, Voter Manipulation, Marketing Instrument

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the primary focus of this research?

The research explores the linguistic strategies of Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign on Twitter, specifically investigating whether a "Corporate Language" approach was used to frame an "authentic" but strategically managed political image.

What are the central themes discussed in the work?

The work covers political communication evolution, the rise of digital marketing in politics, the application of Corporate Language models, and the use of stylometric analysis to decode political rhetoric.

What is the main hypothesis of the thesis?

The thesis proposes that the Trump campaign utilized an editorial linguistic style guide—Corporate Language—to systematically create a persona that appeared authentic, emotional, and commercially focused to win voters.

What methodologies were employed in this study?

The study uses a combined quantitative and qualitative approach, involving the content analysis of a large corpus of tweets from Trump and his campaign staff using tools like AntConc to identify linguistic patterns.

What does the main body of the text cover?

It provides an overview of the political context of U.S. elections, the theoretical definition of Corporate Language, an in-depth analysis of Trump's specific linguistic patterns, and an evaluation of how those patterns align with his broader campaign goals.

Which keywords best characterize this work?

The work is best defined by terms such as Corporate Language, Twitter, Political Campaigning, Authenticity, Framing, and Stylometric analysis.

How did the study confirm the role of an editorial team?

The analysis identified consistent linguistic patterns not just in Trump's tweets, but in those of key campaign members like Dan Scavino, suggesting a coordinated, strategic approach to social media communication.

What specific role did the term "Crooked" play in the campaign?

The term was used systematically to frame opponent Hillary Clinton by attaching a negative, memorable tag that associated her with corruption, effectively guiding public perception through repetitive denigration.

How does the author define the "Emotion-oriented" speech style group?

This group prefers strong, direct emotional language, avoiding overly abstract metaphors. The study shows Trump targeted them by framing himself as the sole, immediate solution to the problems he highlighted in his tweets.