• Summary
  • Contents
  • Subject index

Populist right-wing politics is moving centre-stage, with some parties reaching the very top of the electoral ladder: but do we know why, and why now? In this book Ruth Wodak traces the trajectories of such parties from the margins of the political landscape to its centre, to understand and explain how they are transforming from fringe voices to persuasive political actors who set the agenda and frame media debates. Laying bare the normalization of nationalistic, xenophobic, racist and antisemitic rhetoric, she builds a new framework for this ‘politics of fear’ that is entrenching new social divides of nation, gender and body. The result reveals the micro-politics of right-wing populism: how discourses, genres, images and texts are performed and manipulated in both formal and also everyday contexts with profound consequences. This book is a must-read for scholars and students of linguistics, media and politics wishing to understand these dynamics that are re-shaping our political space.

Performance and the Media: The Politics of Charisma
Performance and the Media: The Politics of Charisma

‘Talk scandals originate in speech acts, i.e. statements and discussions, and it is discursive norms and codes that are transgressed. At stake is the question of what people in a certain position are allowed to say and how they should behave in public discourses.’

Mats Ekström and Bengt Johansson (2008, 77)
The ‘New Face’ of Politics: ‘Old Wine in New Bottles’?

One of the salient elements of right-wing politicians’ success is their well-crafted strategic performance on frontstage, in traditional and new media, including social media, in election rallies, press conferences and speeches, always oriented towards the specific audience. As a cab ...

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