Narrative Campaigns

A narrative strategy in campaigns is one that has been around for a long time. A narrative tells a story with a clear message normally portraying one candidate as the good guy (protagonist), and the other candidate as the bad guy (antagonist). The way a candidate portrays his or her narrative to prospective voters really has a strong pull on who votes for them and who the media outlets choose to cover the most.

            One main candidate who is living off of the narrative role in this election would be Donald Trump. Trump has been building his narrative his entire entertainment career. From the famous show The Apprentice, to his everyday life in the media, he has been known for his extreme personality for many years. This extreme personality has carried over into his campaign as well. Trump is very blunt and tends to get straight to the point. He takes his policy ideas and bumps them up to the extreme, preying on the fears that many Americans have. The media has most definitely picked up on Trump’s narrative of the crazy attitude, and the unpredictable ways and they love it. When Trump refused to show up to a debate many of the first questions asked to his opponents were “So what do you think about Trump not being here?” It is really unclear if Trump is seen as the protagonist or the antagonist for the storyline in media. I believe his media coverage and storyline is based solely on the fact that we never know what his next move is, and I think that is going to keep people interested in him.

            Another candidate who has a strong storyline in this election would be Hilary Clinton. So far she has used the protagonist role in her campaign efforts. She focuses on family issues and making America a great place for families again. Clinton almost uses a motherly type storyline in order to show the country how she feels about things. She has posted many promotional videos where she uses real families and real photos from her past in order to show her connection to family ties and her connection to supporting the everyday American. With this storyline in place it is easy to see why the media typically doesn’t harp too much on her campaign or issues. Clinton is working as the protagonist in this story in order to show the world that she can overcome adversities and trials such as the infamous Monica Lewinski issue and even her email issue which she addressed as her mistake. Overall her story is one that is still evolving and I think voters as well as the media will buy into her protagonist motherly role and will continue to support her throughout the campaign.