Signs of the Apocalypse: An Analysis of Trump Magazine Covers During the 2016 Presidential Campaign

Abstract

This essay engages a content analysis of 45 magazine covers featuring Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Surprisingly, a majority of the covers enlist apocalyptic rhetoric to garner potential consumer attention, regardless of the political leanings of the magazines. By applying characteristics of apocalyptic rhetoric to the magazine covers, the essay draws implications about the direction of the magazine covers, visual rhetoric, and presidential campaigns.

Keywords

Trump U.S. 2016 elections magazine covers visual analysis news coverage

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