View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Digital Repository @ Iowa State University Political Science Publications Political Science 2019 The ffecE ts of Dog-Whistle Politics on Political Violence Olga Chyzh Iowa State University,
[email protected] Mark David Nieman Iowa State University,
[email protected] Clayton Webb University of Kansas Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/pols_pubs Part of the Political Science Commons The ompc lete bibliographic information for this item can be found at https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ pols_pubs/59. For information on how to cite this item, please visit http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ howtocite.html. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Political Science at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Political Science Publications by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. The ffecE ts of Dog-Whistle Politics on Political Violence Abstract The lee ction of President Trump marked significant changes in the content, outlets, and the level of civility of political rhetoric. The traditional left/right policy disagreements took on a more populist tone, activating extremist elements within society. We explore the consequences of political appeals to nationalist identity within the context of modern-day America. We argue that employed by elected officials, nationalist political rhetoric legitimizes extremist views and their expression. This effect is exacerbated by the social media, which provides an unmoderated channel for communication between elected officials and their extremist supporters.