The Rhetoric of “Whataboutism” in American Journalism and Political Identity
Abstract
This paper is focused on the contextual use of the term “whataboutism” in contemporary American politics, specifically in the language of political news commentary. After tracking the word’s emergence in political discourse, some analysis of the term’s recent use in examples of commentary articles is done to explore what the term means as a rhetorical device that structures political conversations in the media and shapes political identities in the public sphere. Overall, “whataboutism” is found to be part of an asymmetrical media ecosystem polarizing the American electorate, and one of the rhetorical tools systematically used in maintaining political group divisions. How “whataboutism” is deployed in political discourse and then grappled with or normalized by journalists is emblematic of trends in American journalistic discourse after the election results of 2016, and the term’s newfound prevalence is illustrative of the degree to which American identities have become politically tribalized.
- Journal
- Res Rhetorica
- Published
- 2020-07-06
- DOI
- 10.29107/rr2020.2.1
- CompPile
- Search in CompPile ↗
- Open Access
- OA PDF Diamond
- Topics
- Export
- BibTeX RIS
Citation Context
Cited by in this index (0)
No articles in this index cite this work.
Cites in this index (0)
No references match articles in this index.
Related Articles
-
Res Rhetorica Oct 2025Fractured borders and politics of resistance: Post-9/11 through Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush (2022) ↗BETÜL ATEŞCİ KOÇAK
-
Res Rhetorica Oct 2025Alma Vančura
-
Res Rhetorica Jun 2025Language as a front of conflict: Russian discourse on the Ukrainian language in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war ↗Nadia Gergalo-Dabek
-
Philosophy & Rhetoric Apr 2025Nirvana Tanoukhi; Nicholas Dunn
-
Rhetoric & Public Affairs Dec 2024Randall Fowler