Antisocialite: Presidential Tweets and the mobilization of Stop the Steal on January 6th

Abstract

The January 6th, 2021, insurrection ushered in a new realm of possibilities around American presidential election results. Guided by Donald Trump’s tweets and rhetoric that day, the violence against the Capitol threatened the peaceful transition of power between presidential administrations. This study investigates how Trump’s tweets on January 6th created a worldview for his followers that made the violent acts against the Capitol that day reasonable and necessary for them to commit. While there have been extensive studies of the insurrection events, this paper presents a rhetorical frame analysis of Trump’s tweets and other rhetoric that day, while aligning the timing and content of his communications with the actions of those who committed the insurrection. This analysis and alignment bears examining because it provides insight into the real effects rhetoric and social media can have on the mobilization of social movements. The rhetorical frame analysis categorizes every Trump tweet from January 6th, demonstrating a progression from diagnostic, to prognostic, and finally to motivational framing in his rhetoric. The analysis also displays an alignment between Trump’s rhetorical frame progression and the violence on the Capitol. This particular type of frame analysis on this topic, coupled with the alignment shown with the insurrection actions fills a gap in this type of research. The implications of this research are that rhetoric has enough power to mobilize social movements into violent action, therefore making it necessary to analyze and understand the rhetorical tactics that were used to do so.