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Name: Katharine Thulson听听
Advisor: Prof. Katherine Arnold-Murray
Class: LING 1000: Language in US Society
Semester: Fall 2023
LURA 2024

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In Lauren Boebert鈥檚 2020 video advertisement titled 鈥淟auren Boebert for Congress 30 TV鈥�, her campaign uses linguistic strategies in both spoken and written language to frame herself as an ideal Republican candidate. Boebert attempts to target her prominently she represents in her explicit appeal to a 鈥減rincipled鈥�, 鈥渘o nonsense鈥�, 鈥渃onservative鈥� way of life.听

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Figure 1. Screenshot from Lauren Boebert鈥檚 2020 Congressional Campaign Ad.听)

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This ad features footage of Boebert within her erstwhile restaurant, dressed in patriotic colors of red, white, and blue, engaging with diverse members of the community through handshakes, embraces, and seemingly substantive conversations. Concurrently, a compelling musical backdrop enhances the impact of Boebert鈥檚 voiceover narration.

Boebert herself voices over the imagery of the commercial, which creates a strong sense of her ownership over the words and stances expressed, which fosters a connection with the potential voters. In Arnold-Murray鈥檚 (2021) study of Congressional campaign advertisements, she references that a political candidate may narrate her own advertisement in order 鈥渢o address concerns about her candidacy head-on鈥� (p. 23). Many politicians choose to remove themselves as much as possible from their advertisements as a mode of self-preservation and to mitigate potential liability, but, as displayed in this ad, Boebert has no problem showcasing herself, her restaurant, and her values to the masses which could be appealing for working-class individuals that value having an authentic connection to the candidates they vote into office.

As a native of the district that she serves, Boebert is a well-known and 听public figure, in part due to the assertive strategies she has employed in curating her political persona.

The on-screen text in the advertisement functions to bolster the campaign鈥檚 assertions, positioning Boebert as the quintessence of GOP ideals. For example, as Boebert鈥檚 voiceover states she is 鈥減ro-Trump, pro-constitution, pro-guns, pro-life, and pro-energy,鈥� text appears on screen simultaneously stating: 鈥淐ONSERVATIVE. REPUBLICAN.鈥�, as seen in Figure 2 below. Boebert鈥檚 campaign not only articulates her own core beliefs but also contends that these beliefs align with those of the GOP. These claims are contentious, as political stances such as being pro-Trump are not inherently reflective of the GOP鈥檚 established .

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Figure 2. Screenshot from Lauren Boebert鈥檚 2020 Congressional Campaign Ad. (

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It鈥檚 especially interesting that Boebert鈥檚 campaign chose to highlight her support for energy, being that it is a very localized issue. Lippi-Green (2012) argues that 鈥渆very politician, every public speaker, every individual adjusts style and language to suit their audience and elicit desired reactions鈥� (p. 136). With this example, Boebert鈥檚 campaign is catering directly to her voters since there is such a prevalent amount of natural gas in Boebert鈥檚 district making up the local economy. It could be argued that Boebert鈥檚 campaign is marketing her more specifically as a Colorado Republican since these ideals would not necessarily resonate with conservatives who lean towards the center of the aisle nor those that reside in states whose economies are not as impacted by energy production. However, this is not what the campaign advertisement is claiming; instead, Boebert鈥檚 campaign makes a salient local political issue within the larger Republican value system.听听听听听听听听听听听

This strategy of adding text on screen anticipates pushback against these stances and functions to preemptively counterargue against critics. For example, as the text displayed on screen in Figure 3 states, 鈥淧RINCIPLED. NO-NONSENSE. PATRIOT鈥�, Boebert鈥檚 voiceover describes her as, 鈥渁 conservative, a Republican, a mom and a business owner鈥�, which appeals to aspects of identity such as motherhood to market her as relatable to voters.

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Figure 3. Screenshot from Lauren Boebert鈥檚 2020 Congressional Campaign Ad. (

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This particular strategy shows striking similarities to Sarah Palin鈥檚 2008 vice presidential campaign, as the McCain-Palin campaign worked to frame her as a small-town, working-class American mother (Lippi-Green, 2012, p. 136). This persona seemingly served both candidates well in their bids to represent rural communities in Congress, but that could soon be the case.

This aligns with Arnold-Murray鈥檚 (2021) study of similar strategies in Congressional campaign ads, in which she finds that politicians use intertextual strategies to 鈥渃onstruct meanings and perceptions of past, present, and future situations that favor themselves/their parties鈥� (p. 17). Through this ad, Boebert鈥檚 campaign restricts opportunities for dialogue with her voters. Any potential counterarguments regarding the essence of the GOP are swiftly dismissed by the on-screen text. While the advertisement lacks overt engagement with viewers, it seems aimed at provoking discourse on the fundamental principles that the GOP ought to embrace.

This could hold even more true when taking a deeper delve into the stances Boebert鈥檚 campaign supports. Colorado is a state that , yet Boebert鈥檚 campaign openly expresses her pro-life stance in this advertisement. Openly campaigning against a right protected by the state suggests that Boebert鈥檚 2020 campaign perceived fundamental flaws within the Colorado government. Adopting this position on such a controversial topic could undoubtedly ignite debate about the core values of the GOP, or what the party should represent.

The bold assertions that Boebert is a 鈥淐ONSERVATIVE. REPUBLICAN.鈥� and 鈥淧RINCIPLED. NO-NONSENSE. PATRIOT.鈥� are prominently displayed on the screen at different points in time during the duration of the advertisement, as seen in Figure 1 through 3 above. The use of periods is a stylistic strategy that asserts these characteristics as fact. If the campaign were to have used another kind of punctuation (e.g., commas) or even no punctuation at all, the meanings of the phrases would shift and convey a less assertive message. Through the placement of these phrases, Boebert鈥檚 campaign communicates a resolute message that emphasizes her alignment with conservative Republican principles rooted in her adherence to what she perceives to be the core values of the United States.

As American citizens, it is crucial that we pay attention to what is going on in our country politically and cast our votes purposefully. As politicians鈥� strategies for communicating with voters evolve, so too must our capacity for critical analysis.

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Title Image Credit听

1. Screenshot from Lauren Boebert鈥檚 2020 Congressional Campaign Ad.听.

References

1. Arnold-Murray, K. (2021). Multimodally constructed dialogue in political campaign commercials. Journal of Pragmatics, 173, 15鈥�27. .
2. Luning, E. (2020). Lauren Boebert for Congress 30 TV. Colorado Politics. .
3. Lippi-Green, R. (2012). English with an accent: Language, ideology and discrimination in the United States. Taylor & Francis.
4. Screenshot from Lauren Boebert鈥檚 2020 Congressional Campaign Ad.听.