‘Our’ Idiot President?
“I would like in the first place merely to point out that in the case of performative utterances, saying something stupid amounts to doing something stupid, an...
Marnie Ritchie
Is Donald Trump a rhetorical genius?
The Guardian has produced a video explainer featuring Dr. Jennifer Mercieca, managing editor of Citizen Critics, as she explains some of President Trump's most...
Michael Cohen’s verbal somersault
This article originally appeared in The Conversation on February 27, 2019.
Michael Cohen, who admits to lying, also says he’s not a liar.
Can we separate ...
What Can ‘The Favourite’ Tell Us about the Rhetoric of Queer Letters?
With the Academy Awards scheduled for this week, there’s plenty of buzz about “The Favourite.” It tops this year’s nominations (alongside “Roma”) with 10, recei...
One Rhetorician’s Read of Trump’s Second State of the Union
There are eight observations that really stood out to me, a communication scholar of over 40 years, in watching President Trump’s State of the Union address on ...
Citizen Critics Live:
State of the Union
Throughout the 2019 State of the Union, six Citizen Critics brought their unique expertise and perspectives on political rhetoric and oratory. The evening's con...
All Together Now
Consubstantiality in the Controversy around a Native Elder and a #MAGA Hat-Clad Teen in D.C.
Consubstantiality is a rhetorical concept describing how people al...
X Marks the Spot
Identifying Chiasmus in the 2019 Government Shutdown Discourse
This past weekend, Citizen Critics Editor in Chief Jennifer Mercieca tweeted about House Speaker...
Government #ShutDown and Stasis
American public discourse has worked itself into knots again. Amid the recent government shutdown and deliberation over President Trump’s wall, we seem to have ...
The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Language of ‘Potential’
The funeral of former President George H.W. Bush has prompted journalists to assess the legacy of one of his most important legislative achievements, the Americ...
