Thinning the Herd: COVID-19 and the Rhetoric of Trumpian Catastrophe

IF 1.1 2区 文学 Q3 COMMUNICATION Rhetoric Society Quarterly Pub Date : 2023-05-17 DOI:10.1080/02773945.2022.2146170
Luke A. Winslow
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Abstract

ABSTRACT As COVID-19 infections spread in early 2020, the term herd immunity drew the Trump administration’s attention as a remedy for redressing the pandemic. However, scientific experts warned the Trump administration against adopting herd immunity as a pandemic response. The Trump administration was unmoved. I argue that understanding the Trump administration’s incongruous pandemic response is impossible without theorizing the deeper catastrophic formations uniting herd immunity and the political Right. Drawing evidence from the Trump administration and its allies, I analyze herd immunity as a reflection of a catastrophic form of social Darwinism emerging from the Trump administration’s coronavirus messaging. By exploring the Trump administration’s general enthusiasm for catastrophe, I offer a fresh scholarly contribution at the intersection of rhetorical studies, public address, and health, political, and scientific communication, ultimately illuminating larger theoretical and political lessons for the discipline and beyond.
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淡化人群:新冠肺炎与特朗普灾难的修辞
摘要随着新冠肺炎感染在2020年初蔓延,群体免疫一词引起了特朗普政府的注意,作为应对疫情的一种补救措施。然而,科学专家警告特朗普政府不要将群体免疫作为应对疫情的手段。特朗普政府不为所动。我认为,如果不将群体免疫和政治右翼结合在一起的更深层次的灾难性形成理论化,就不可能理解特朗普政府不协调的疫情应对措施。根据特朗普政府及其盟友的证据,我将群体免疫分析为特朗普政府新冠病毒信息中出现的灾难性社会达尔文主义的反映。通过探索特朗普政府对灾难的普遍热情,我在修辞研究、公共演讲、健康、政治和科学传播的交叉点上做出了新的学术贡献,最终为该学科及其他学科提供了更大的理论和政治教训。
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CiteScore
1.00
自引率
14.30%
发文量
40
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