1st Edition
The Discursive Construction of the Modern Political Self Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the Age of Social Media
Table of contents
1. Introduction
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Aims of the book
Overarching analytic approaches
Contents of the book
2. Modern political discourse: Innovations and revisited traditions
Introduction
Political discourse in the post-digital era
The language of populism
3. The discursive construction, delegitimization, and defense of political identities
Introduction
Constructing (political) selves: positioning, narrative, and coherence
Contesting the opposition: delegitimization and recontextualization
Taking a stance in the defense of identities
4. "It’s time for one of us": the construction of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s political self during her first campaign
Introduction
The selected viral content of Ocasio-Cortez’s first campaign
The construction of a coherent political self in The Courage to Change
A tweeted narrative
Narrating Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: novelty and populism in her campaign ad and tweets
5. Attacks on a progressive newcomer: Fox News coverage and its uptake online
The anti-AOC offensive
Methods
Dismantling legitimacy on Fox News
The recontextualization of Ocasio-Cortez’s words onto Fox News
Fox News coverage of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
YouTube comments about Fox News coverage
6. "Get used to me slaying": The discursive realization of a ‘clapback queen’
Introduction
Data and Methods
"I am incredibly flattered," "This is not about me:" defense, rebuttal, and reprisal on the House floor
"Don’t hate me cause you ain’t me, fellas": expressing (dis)alignment on Twitter
Conclusions
7. The identity work of a modern leader
Introduction
Narrating a new political identity
Subverting the narrative
Safeguarding the narrative
Looking ahead
Appendix
Index
Biography
Jacqueline Aiello is Assistant Professor at University of Ferrara, Italy. She earned her doctorate in TESOL from New York University. She is the author of Negotiating Englishes and English-speaking Identities (2018, Routledge), for which she was awarded the 2019 AIA Junior Book Prize.
