This book considers the rhetorical strategies used by celebrities and their surrogates and attorneys when faced with claims of sexual misconduct. During the past five years, a series of public figures has claimed that their celebrity persona is distinct from their “real” self as a way of eluding allegations of sexual misconduct in the courthouse and in the court of public opinion. This book examines three case studies in which such claims were employed, namely Terry Bollea/Hulk Hogan, President Donald Trump/Reality Show Host Donald Trump, and R. Kelly/Robert Kelly, to assess the mediated and legal communicative strategies used and their potential implications. Using a technique which the author calls “discursive self-cleaving,” these stars strategically craft statements on social media, in the press, and in the courtroom to create a discourse that works to shift blame away from their behavior. The book also traces the relationship between these discursive approaches and the politics of sexual violence and domestic abuse during the early months of the #MeToo movement and beyond. Providing a richly detailed analysis of how this discourse functions and why jurors and members of the public find it convincing, this book will be of interest to students and scholars in the field of communication studies, rhetoric, media, law, and popular culture studies.

"This book considers the rhetorical strategies used by celebrities and their surrogates and attorneys when faced with claims of sexual misconduct. During the past five years, a series of public figures have claimed that their celebrity persona is distinct from their "real" self as a way of eluding allegations of sexual misconduct in the courthouse and in the court of public opinion. This book examines three case studies in which such claims were employed, namely Terry Bollea/Hulk Hogan, President Donald Trump/Reality Show Host Donald Trump, and R. Kelly/ Robert Kelly, to assess the mediated and legal communicative strategies used and their potential implications. Using a technique which the author calls "discursive self-cleaving", these stars strategically craft statements on social media, in the press, and in the courtroom to create a discourse that works to shift blame away from their behavior. The book also traces the relationship between these discursive approaches and the politics of sexual violence and domestic abuse during the early months of the #MeToo movement and beyond. Providing a richly detailed analysis of how this discourse functions and why jurors and members of the public find it convincing, this book will be of interest to students and scholars in the field of Communication Studies, Rhetoric, Media, Law, and Popular Culture Studies"--

In examining the presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump, and by extension their communication styles, this book provides a foundation for understanding charismatic leadership and its potent effect on followers. The book identifies each leader’s charismatic leadership attributes, focusing specifically on communication and impression management. It presents a qualitative collection of leader observations and outcomes based on publications and audio and video recordings. By examining two distinctly different leaders, each with evidence of effective, if controversial, outcomes, it shows a spectrum of approaches to mobilizing followers. This book is suited to students and readers interested in leadership studies, leadership communication, and persuasion.

Soccer has long been known as 'the beautiful game'. This multi-disciplinary volume explores soccer, soccer culture, and the representation of soccer in art, film, and literature, using the critical tools of aesthetics, poetics, and rhetoric. Including international contributions from scholars of philosophy, literary and cultural studies, linguistics, art history, and the creative arts, this book begins by investigating the relationship between beauty and soccer and asks what criteria should be used to judge the sport’s aesthetic value. Covering topics as diverse as humor, national identity, style, celebrity, and social media, its chapters examine the nature of fandom, the role of language, and the significance of soccer in contemporary popular culture. It also discusses what one might call the ‘stylistics’ of soccer, analyzing how players, fans, and commentators communicate on and off the pitch, in the press, on social media, and in wider public discourse. The Aesthetics, Poetics, and Rhetoric of Soccer makes for fascinating reading for anybody with an interest in sport, culture, literature, philosophy, linguistics, and society.

From the trials of Oscar Pistorius to O. J. Simpson and Michael Jackson, this innovative book provides a critical review of 11 high profile criminal cases. It delivers an accessible examination of the sociological and psychological processes underpinning the construction of guilt and innocence in criminal trials, the media and wider society.

In recent decades, some of the most celebrated and culturally influential American oratorical performances have come not from political leaders or religious visionaries, but from stand-up comics. Even though comedy and satire have been addressed by rhetorical scholarship in recent decades, little attention has been paid to stand-up. This collection is an attempt to further cultivate the growing conversation about stand-up comedy from the perspective of the rhetorical tradition. It brings together literatures from rhetorical, cultural, and humor studies to provide a unique exploration of stand-up comedy that both argues on behalf of the form’s capacity for social change and attempts to draw attention to a series of otherwise unrecognized rhetors who have made significant contributions to public culture through comedy.

This Handbook gathers together empirical and theoretical chapters from leading scholars and clinicians to examine the broad issue of adult mental health. The contributors draw upon data from a variety of contexts to illustrate the multiple ways in which language as action can assist us in better understanding the discursive practices that surround adult mental health. Conversation and discourse analysis are useful, related approaches for the study of mental health conditions, particularly when underpinned by a social constructionist framework. In the field of mental health, the use of these two approaches is growing, with emergent implications for adults with mental health conditions, their practitioners, and/or their families. Divided into four parts; Reconceptualising Mental Health and Illness; Naming, Labelling and Diagnosing; The Discursive Practice of Psychiatry; and Therapy and Interventions; this Handbook provides a comprehensive overview of current debates regarding adult mental health.

The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Feminist Rhetoric explores the histories, concerns, and possible futures of feminist rhetorical work in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Featuring work from scholars across disciplines, this book explores where we have been, where we are, and where we might be going. Forwarding key areas of study in feminist rhetoric, the handbook is divided into five interrelated sections—Time: Discovering, Recovering, and Composing our Histories; Space: Setting and Testing Boundaries: Physical and Digital Locales; Movement: Exploring Activism, Migration, and Globalism; Being: Celebrating (and Insisting on) Embodied Praxis; and Becoming: Transforming Hopes into Feminist Practice. Throughout the handbook, contributors survey and document the critical work of feminist rhetoric, pointing to ongoing interests in history, politics, and activism while showcasing new lines of inquiry and new methods of analysis, critique, and intervention. The first of its kind, this accessibly written handbook will be an indispensable resource for scholars and researchers in the fields of rhetoric, writing studies, communication studies, and women’s and gender studies.

Why are we fascinated by celebrities we’ve never met? What is the difference between fame and celebrity? How has social media enabled a new wave of celebrities? The Psychology of Celebrity explores the origins of celebrity culture, the relationships celebrities have with their fans, how fame can affect celebrities, and what shapes our thinking about celebrities we admire. The book also addresses the way in which the media has been and continues to be an outlet for celebrities, culminating in the role of social media, reality television, and technology in our modern society. Drawing on research featuring real life celebrities from the Kardashians to Michael Jackson, The Psychology of Celebrity shows us that celebrity influence can have both positive and negative outcomes and the impact these can have on our lives.

Rhetoric of Masculinity: Male Body Image, Media, and Gender Role Stress/Conflict lends depth and global nuance to discourse associated with the masculinity concept as it brings to bear on males' self-image, role in society, media representations of them, and the gender role stress/conflict experienced when they fail to measure up to social standards associated with what it means to be manly. Even though the concept of masculine gender role stress/conflict has received substantial scholarly attention in psychology, social learning effects of masculinity as it plays out in media warrant further study given that representations offer audiences restrictive male gender roles that may contribute to toxic masculinity. Men and boys are taught to be self-sufficient, to act tough, to be muscular, heterosexual, and to use aggression to resolve conflicts. Such contexts provide restrictive images that can result in self harm and an inflexible social milieu. Scholars and students of communication, rhetoric, and gender studies will find this book particularly interesting.