Making war and peace with emotion: examining the Iraq and Iran cases via presidential speech and media coverage

This study investigates emotions conveyed in US presidential speeches and media coverage regarding the Iraq War and the Iran nuclear deal during 2003 and 2015. The researchers gathered and examined news stories about the two policies, all official speeches delivered by George W Bush and Barack Obama, and opinion polls conducted during the respective six-month period in those two years. Nine discrete emotions were coded to capture the valence and volume in the speeches and news media content. The study finds that emotions appear more frequently in the Iraq discourse than in the Iran counterpart. President Bush used more negative emotions while President Obama employed more positive emotions. Emotion in the media coverage is constant and stable across the two policy periods; yet negative emotions are more prevalent than positive counterparts in the media despite distinct foreign policies. The study also examines public opinion trends toward the two policies for inferring potential linkage. This article contributes to the conceptual nexus among emotional persuasion, journalism pattern, and foreign policy-making process.Accepted manuscrip

Graveyard of Republics: An Analysis of Torture in Counterinsurgency

Counterinsurgency relies on the dual instruments of propaganda and coercion. If well balanced, these instruments may convince the civilian populace that the rebels cannot win; furthermore, the agenda of counterinsurgents seems to be morally superior to that of the rebels. To attain this balance, counterinsurgents must have a steady flow of intelligence. This is a key to victory, but intelligence gathering is a complex and time-consuming process. In times of great pressure, counterinsurgents tend to fall back on brutality, including torture, to compensate for a lack of information. Although torture provides a great volume of information, the cost of its acquisition is enormous: torture cripples pacification efforts, as it alienates the civilian populace and boosts insurgency. Furthermore, the credibility of information gained via torture is uncertain. The French campaign in Algeria and the American Global War on Terror were lost in part because security agencies resorted to torture in order to gain vital intelligence. The poison pill of torture is inimical to rational counterinsurgency operations

A Comparison of Marketing Techniques Among Military Recruiters

The U.S. Department of Defense spent $11 billion in enlistment and retention bonuses from 2006 to 2010, which had only a marginally positive effect on the enlistment rate for the Army. The case study addressed this business problem of recruiting by exploring marketing strategies successful recruiting professionals used to motivate individuals to join the military. The purpose of this study was to determine effective recruiting strategies. Therefore, it incorporated the conceptual framework of emergent strategy theory, which postulated the best strategies are neither completely planned nor completely random, but are rather an adaptation to changing dynamics and circumstances. The population consisted of 2 former recruiters, 1 from the Army and another from the Marine Corps, as well as 38 college students located in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Data for the study morphed from face-to-face interviews and 3 focus groups comprised of 10 to 15 students each, for the purpose of addressing the research question. Data analysis occurred through a process of coding and theming. The 9 themes identified included tell the story, advertising strategies, and fit for duty. A lesson learned from these themes was that the key for successful recruiting strategies lies in aligning with the wants and needs of individuals in the target demographic. If senior leaders in the Department of Defense followed the recommendations provided, each of the branches of the military service could potentially achieve higher recruiting rates at a lower cost. The study could result in social change whereby eligible recruits could view the Army and Marine Corps as professions of arms in which individuals can live out their ideals of patriotism but also have a good quality of life due to the benefits of military service

A Comparison of Marketing Techniques Among Military Recruiters

The U.S. Department of Defense spent $11 billion in enlistment and retention bonuses from 2006 to 2010, which had only a marginally positive effect on the enlistment rate for the Army. The case study addressed this business problem of recruiting by exploring marketing strategies successful recruiting professionals used to motivate individuals to join the military. The purpose of this study was to determine effective recruiting strategies. Therefore, it incorporated the conceptual framework of emergent strategy theory, which postulated the best strategies are neither completely planned nor completely random, but are rather an adaptation to changing dynamics and circumstances. The population consisted of 2 former recruiters, 1 from the Army and another from the Marine Corps, as well as 38 college students located in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Data for the study morphed from face-to-face interviews and 3 focus groups comprised of 10 to 15 students each, for the purpose of addressing the research question. Data analysis occurred through a process of coding and theming. The 9 themes identified included tell the story, advertising strategies, and fit for duty. A lesson learned from these themes was that the key for successful recruiting strategies lies in aligning with the wants and needs of individuals in the target demographic. If senior leaders in the Department of Defense followed the recommendations provided, each of the branches of the military service could potentially achieve higher recruiting rates at a lower cost. The study could result in social change whereby eligible recruits could view the Army and Marine Corps as professions of arms in which individuals can live out their ideals of patriotism but also have a good quality of life due to the benefits of military service

a content analysis of US presidential rhetoric (2001-2009)

학위논문(석사)--서울대학교 대학원 :국제대학원 국제학과(국제협력전공),2019. 8. Sheen, Seong-ho.이 연구는 이라크 전쟁 유지와 지지를 이끌기 위한 전략으로서 미국 대통령 발언에서 나타나는 '두려움'의 사용을 분석하였다. 대통령 발언의 전략을 연구하기 위해 2001년 1월부터 2009년 1월 사이에 대통령 라디오 방송에서 나온 대통령 미사여구에 대한 정량적 콘텐츠 분석을 했다. 이 분석은 '테러'와 대량살상무기의 위협이 공포의 미사여구를 조성하는 데 있어서 중심 요소였다는 점을 보여준다. 대통령 라디오 방송 내에서 이러한 요소들은 중동의 평화와 안보를 증진시키는 미국의 역할과도 병행되었다. 이 연구는 다음과 같은 사실을 발견하였다. 2001년 9월 11일 테러 공격 이후 미국 내에서 조성된 매우 민감해진 환경에서 '공포'는 단기 정책에 대한 대중의 지지를 동원하는 데 매우 효과적인 도구였다. 그러나 유연성과 적응력이 떨어져 부시 대통령이 겪었던 신뢰성과 정통성의 손실을 극복하는 데는 효과가 없었다. 따라서 장기적인 지지를 유지하기 위한 전략으로 효과를 보지 못하였다. 이 연구에서 미사여구 전략은 단기 지지를 받기 위해서는 적응과 검증은 필요하지 않지만 장기적인 지지를 성공적으로 유지하기 위해서는 적응과 검증이 필요하다는 것을 밝혀냈다.This study analyses the use of fear in US presidential rhetoric as an active soft power strategy designed to achieve support mobilisation and maintenance for the Iraq War. A quantitative content analysis of the Weekly Radio Broadcasts of the President of the United States between January 2001 and January 2009 is conducted in order to study presidential rhetoric in isolation from the broader media framing of war discourse. Such analysis shows that terror and the threat of WMDs were central elements in the creation of a rhetoric of fear, and that such elements were often juxtaposed with reference to a US role of promoting peace and security in the region within presidential rhetoric. This study finds that in the highly sensitised environment the US found itself in following the September 11, 2001, terror attacks, fear proved to be a highly effective tool for mobilising public support for short-term policy initiatives. However, due to a lack of flexibility and adaptability, the rhetoric of fear as employed by President Bush was ineffective in overcoming a loss of credibility and legitimacy, therefore proving ineffective as a mechanism for achieving long-term support maintenance amongst the US population. Thus, this study suggests that rhetoric strategies for successful for long-term support maintenance require elements of adaptability and verifiability, which are not essential in achieving initial support mobilisation.Abstract I. Introduction II. Literature Review III. Conceptual and Theoretical Frameworks IV. Research Design V Word Frequency Counts of 'Fear' & its Composite Elements in Presidential Radio Addresses (2001-2009) VI. Implications of the Rhetoric of Fear VII. Conclusion Bibliography Appendix 국문 요약Maste

Procuring the Cross of Iron: The Effect of Congressional Approval on the U.S. Defense Budget

Understanding why we spend is an essential step in controlling and justifying the U.S. defense budget. Renewed study may grant perspective on the journey U.S. defense spending has taken over the last 40 years, and provide clues to what lies ahead. This dissertation examines the impact of congressional approval on U.S. defense spending through time series analysis of the period 1970 - 2015. The interaction between public approval and congressional action is viewed through the lens of Punctuated Equilibrium Theory (Jones, 2001) and is a departure from classical incrementalism (Key, 1940; Wildavsky, 1964, 1975, 2004) traditionally associated with budgets. Other key drivers, such as public opinion on the sufficiency of the defense budget, the presence of war and economic health are included in the model to isolate causation and interaction, but the focus is on the significant impact of congressional approval to punctuations in defense spending both during and outside periods of war and severe economic turmoil. The defense budget represents over half of all discretionary spending, and produces economic impacts in every state and virtually every congressional district. The scale, salience and extensibility of the defense budget offer a tempting target for Congress to provide quick stimulus to the electorate on a scale impossible with any other single appropriation. Whether motivated by fear of potential foreign enemies, nationalistic pride, concern for service members, or economic advantage, the defense budget is as close to a bipartisan priority as can be found in U.S. society. The defense budget is a useful tool for Members of Congress to influence individual and institutional public approval and one that is regularly utilized both within and without time of war or economic extremis to garner constituency support