EBOOK
The Tribalization of Politics
How Rush Limbaugh's Race-Baiting Rhetoric on the Obama Presidency Paved the Way for Trump
Ian Reifowitz(0)
About
"How did we get here?" is one of the essential questions right now in American politics. How did we go from a country that elected Barack Obama twice to one that, popular vote loss aside, elected Donald Trump? Two words: Rush Limbaugh.
The Tribalization of Politics explores how the conservative radio host "tribalized" our politics through his racially divisive, falsehood-ridden portrayal of President Obama. By playing and preying on white anxiety, Limbaugh laid the groundwork for the election of a president who essentially adopted his view of the Obama presidency.
During Obama's eight years in office, Limbaugh repeatedly used a technique called "racial priming" against America's first black president-language designed to heighten white racial or cultural resentment. Limbaugh's aim was to convince his audience that Obama was anti-white, anti-American, radical, Marxist, black nationalist, among other labels. Limbaugh's divisive rhetoric against Obama was designed to cleave America in two, creating a conservative "tribe" animated by passionate racial and cultural hatred toward the opposing tribe.
A vital analysis of the assault on truth and accuracy carried out by right-wing media as well as by politicians like Trump, The Tribalization of Politics reveals how the race baiting rhetoric of the most popular radio host in America against President Obama helped elect our current president, in the process threatening the democratic principles upon which our country was built.
The Tribalization of Politics explores how the conservative radio host "tribalized" our politics through his racially divisive, falsehood-ridden portrayal of President Obama. By playing and preying on white anxiety, Limbaugh laid the groundwork for the election of a president who essentially adopted his view of the Obama presidency.
During Obama's eight years in office, Limbaugh repeatedly used a technique called "racial priming" against America's first black president-language designed to heighten white racial or cultural resentment. Limbaugh's aim was to convince his audience that Obama was anti-white, anti-American, radical, Marxist, black nationalist, among other labels. Limbaugh's divisive rhetoric against Obama was designed to cleave America in two, creating a conservative "tribe" animated by passionate racial and cultural hatred toward the opposing tribe.
A vital analysis of the assault on truth and accuracy carried out by right-wing media as well as by politicians like Trump, The Tribalization of Politics reveals how the race baiting rhetoric of the most popular radio host in America against President Obama helped elect our current president, in the process threatening the democratic principles upon which our country was built.
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Reviews
"Many have commented on the growing tribalization of American politics. But perhaps no one has done it as creatively as Ian Reifowitz. By documenting Rush Limbaugh's persistent race-baiting and "othering" of the Obama Presidency, this book provides invaluable insights into how right-wing backlash against the first black president set the stage for the rise of Donald Trump. A must read for anyone i
Michael Tesler, co-author of Identity Crisis: The 2016 Presidential Campaign
"Ian Reifowitz's impressive forensic examination of Rush Limbaugh's years of cynical race-baiting provides a startling glimpse into the talk radio kingpin's outsize role in tribalizing and dividing America during the years of Barack Obama's presidency. Reifowitz details Limbaugh's central role in priming conservative audiences to view Obama as a paragon of racial rage and retribution, rather than
Greg Sargent, author of An Uncivil War
"The radicalization of movement conservatism and the Republican Party can be laid at the feet of Rush Limbaugh in so many ways -- especially the way he normalized hate speech and a loathing for democracy. Ian Reifowitz brilliantly lays out the path that Limbaugh took during the Obama presidency and demonstrates that it became a roadmap for the rise of Trumpism and its unleashing of the forces of h
David Neiwert, author of Alt-America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump