CARP Lab is pleased to introduce you to our newest intern, Andrew Douglas, who is joining us in Washington, DC this fall. Andrew is an undergraduate political media intern currently in his senior year at DePauw University. His background comes from experience running the media platforms for a Chicago-based startup as well as working under …
The so-called Trump Bump is a gift that keeps on giving. Traditional news outlets and their social media competitors for advertising dollars, liberals and conservatives, and even Trump and Putin all benefit from the commodification of public interest in the Trump White House.
By Martijn Icks Social media have made public shaming all too easy. With great frequency, cries of moral indignation resound on the Internet, aimed at persons who have allegedly misbehaved or uttered disgraceful statements. These people suddenly find themselves beleaguered by digital torch-and-pitchfork mobs, ready to slaughter their good name. They are lambasted in furious …
Continue reading Shame on You: Public Humiliation as Punishment
By Jennifer Keohane While the heat and humidity have made those in DC lethargic and prone to staying inside and binging on Netflix, on Twitter, it’s always a perfect 75 degrees with conditions ripe for character assassination. My case today comes from the recent wave of primary elections ahead of November’s midterms. In New York’s …
Continue reading On Authenticity and Character Assassination
By Sergei A. Samoilenko In March 2012, Teju Cole, an American writer, photographer, and art historian, wrote on his Twitter account, “The fastest growth industry in the US is the White Savior Industrial Complex. The white saviour supports brutal policies in the morning, founds charities in the afternoon, and receives awards in the evening.” It …
Continue reading On Western Paternalism, Suffering Others, and White Knight Syndrome
By Vasily Gatov Most people do not usually meet and befriend political consultants or spin doctors. Neither are they well acquainted with system architects and hackers – those who write rules of computer network systems and those who crack them. The overwhelming majority of the public gathers their understanding and perception of such professionals from …
Continue reading NETWORKS OF LIES, or How the Cambridge Analytica Scandal Worked
By Katya Beisel Yesterday morning, seasoned public relations practitioners, communication educators and university students from across the nation's capitol area gathered at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. for a unique three-panel event focused on a variety of issues and current events within reputation management. Organized in partnership with American University's School of Communication, …
In Head in the Clouds: The Ridicule of Socrates in Classical Athens, Martijn Icks started a new year by looking to the past and examining how a satirical play may have impugned Socrates' reputation decades before his execution. Later in the month, Jennifer Keohane reflected on her own personal struggle with ad hominem attacks following …
Internet companies and intelligence agencies now have access to large amounts of personal data including compromising materials that can be potentially used for blackmailing the next generation of politicians and presidents.
By Jennifer Keohane In this post, I introduce a rhetorical approach to character. This understanding may not square with other academic disciplines that may be interested in other aspects, but I hope this explanation will help explain my approach to studying character assassination. I start from the assumption that character assassination occurs in communication. That …
Character Assassination and Reputation Politics Research Lab 