Marketing the Populist Politician : The Demotic Democrat

Images of political leaders as everyday figures, involved in commonplace activities, now form an increasingly important aspect of electoral presentation. This text examines how and why selected political figures have embraced a populist agenda in a social context and addresses the scope and limitations of such an approach in the US and the UK. The Marketing Of Politicians Has Increasingly Revolved Around The Interplay Between Their Social Characteristics And Their Political Appeal. The Presentation Of Political Leaders As 'ordinary' Has Become An Important Criteria For Their Electoral Standing. Marketing The Populist Politician Examines How And Why Selected Political Leaders From The United Kingdom And United States Have Adopted A Populist Remit And Presented Their Ordinariness As An Asset When Engaging In A Fight For Popular Credibility. It Considers How Emotional Values And Social Hardship Appear To Be Contemporary Necessities In Politics, And How These Are Presented And Manufactured For Popular Consumption. Leadership And Ordinariness -- Cloth Coats And Camelot -- Thatcher And Major: Marketing A Conservative Identity -- Confronting An Elite Identity -- New Labour And Tony Blair -- Bush, Nascar Dads And Wal-mart Moms -- Cameron And Brown -- Conclusion. Robert Busby. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Front Matter....Pages i-ix Introduction....Pages 1-8 Leadership and Ordinariness....Pages 9-39 Cloth Coats and Camelot....Pages 40-63 Thatcher and Major: Marketing a Conservative Identity....Pages 64-87 Confronting an Elite Identity....Pages 88-112 New Labour and Tony Blair....Pages 113-139 Bush, Nascar Dads and Wal-Mart Moms....Pages 140-167 Cameron and Brown....Pages 168-198 Conclusion....Pages 199-207 Back Matter....Pages 208-232