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    ‘Everything everywhere all at once’: Paradigm shifts, the dynamics of agency, and the January 6th assault on the US capitol
    (SAGE Publications, 2024-09-26) Wilson S; Chace S
    To unpack the underlying causes of the events of January 6th, 2021, by supporters of outgoing President Trump, this essay pursues two lines of inquiry. Firstly, drawing on insights from Kuhn and Bion into, respectively, paradigm shifts and group dynamics, we argue support for Trump’s promise to ‘make American great again’ is rooted in anxiety triggered by various disruptive changes facing Americans. Followers alleviate this by becoming dependent upon Trump, thereby affording him undue influence. January 6th itself, we argue, was a paradigm shifting event, constituting a shattering betrayal of a sitting President’s fundamental duty to uphold the Constitution and keep the country safe from harm. Secondly, we examine the MAGA worldview, drawing on social identity theory, its offshoot regarding leadership, and notions of agency. We highlight its deleterious effects on how Trump and his followers exercised their agency and, simultaneously, how it legitimated Trump’s reckless betrayal of his responsibilities. Through our analysis of these underlying causes, we conclude that January 6th was no mere aberration in terms of what Trump and his supporters are capable of doing. Rather we contend the same forces animating what happened that day remain a clear and present danger to democracy in America.
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    Trump’s populism, la trahison des clercs and embracing dissent
    (SAGE Publications, 2018) Sligo F
    This article explores President Trump’s populist politics and its implications for scholars in communication studies, examining how Trump’s supporters need to be better understood within their own context. The thinking of Laclau, Mouffe and others, based particularly on observations of European populism, is employed to shed light on how populist social trends may undermine the legitimacy of rational public discourse and foster public acceptance of authoritarianism. Their perspective also gives insights into means by which scholars can better understand their own responsibility to avoid falling into the trap of invective-swapping seen during the US 2016 presidential campaign. In so doing, the article suggests ways whereby scholars can work towards the protection of a free society and help resolve the crisis of populism in ethical, informed and nuanced ways that help to arrest a drift to authoritarianism.