Abstract
By looking at Hillary Clinton’s verbal communication during the 2016 presidential election, this chapter offers much-needed insight into the communication aspect of campaign targeting. Using analysis of speeches and debate performances, the chapter looks closely at prominent and important themes and issues Clinton highlighted during the campaign that could have appealed to moderate swing voters who did not have a positive opinion of her Republican opponent, Donald Trump. The chapter also examines Clinton’s verbal communication from a broader perspective to better understand how her overall message may have been received by this less politically engaged demographic. The chapter concludes by highlighting what impact Clinton’s communication may have had on her evidential election defeat, and what lessons this teaches us about contemporary thinking around targeted communication.
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Elder, E. (2018). The Clinton Campaign: Appeals to Moderate Swing Voters Through Anti-Trump Targeted Communication. In: Gillies, J. (eds) Political Marketing in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. Palgrave Studies in Political Marketing and Management. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59345-6_6
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