What is it about?

The study reveals that Donald Trump's language is significantly simpler than all other presidential candidates in both parties. By analyzing ten different transcripts of Donald Trump's interviews and debates, in comparison with ten transcripts of other candidates, the results show that Donald Trump's language is fully understood by fourth to fifth graders, while the average of all other candidates is of ninth grade. In addition, Donald Trump's average sentence length and the percentage of complex words (polysyllables) are significantly shorter and lower than all other candidates.

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Why is it important?

The study affirms the fact that Donald Trump addresses wider audiences and potential voters with lower levels of education, using significantly simpler language. The study also suggests that using such language is a radicalization of the anti-intellectual trend of U.S. presidents in the last 200 years.

Perspectives

After studying president Obama's fascinating rhetoric during his presidency, I found Donald Trump's rhetoric unique and fascinating even before the Republican Primaries began. My research started when Trump was still the underdog in the Republican race, and the more outrageous his announcement were, the more media coverage and voters he gained. Agree with him or not, his character and his rhetoric are worth studying, and I am convinced that his rhetoric has a major part in his ability to win presidency.

Orly Kayam
Wingate Institute

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This page is a summary of: The Readability and Simplicity of Donald Trump’s Language, Political Studies Review, September 2017, SAGE Publications,
DOI: 10.1177/1478929917706844.
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