Understanding Political Public Relations Techniques

Book excerpt: This book focuses on Political Public Relations (PPR) Techniques of both Russian and US Leaderships. It does so by analysing leadership (presidential or otherwise) inaugural addresses from the two countries between 1980 to 2018, using triangulation analysis of verbal, non-verbal language, and emotions of speakers. Given that the Russian perception of Political Public Relations, known as Political Technologies (PT) in Russia, is unique and often misunderstood or misinterpreted in Western scholarship, the book acts as a bridge between these two fields of studies. With that in mind, the study of Political Technologies is explained and applied in a wider sense than is offered by other disciplines, specifically in more meaningful ways than suggested in communications discipline in the West. In doing so, the book not only offers a deep dive into theory, but also provides a unique methodology aiming at extracting and analysing PPR or PT techniques. This triangulation method allows us to investigate a combined effect of audio visual and verbal “effects” on the general public, and offers a way of interpreting such “effects”. Readers would understand more about the research dynamic in PPR discipline, apply the triangulation methodology to expand this research, and more generally find out more about the evidence-based list of PPR techniques and their applications and interpretations.”