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When it comes to communications, former US President Donald J. Trump is a true master of the art. Time and again during his candidacy, and his presidency, Trump has been able to survive scandals that would have ended the political careers of lesser people.
From accusations of groping women to business lawsuits, from misuse of funds to accusations that he colluded with Russia to win the election, and even his attempted coup on January 6, each time Trump has not only been able to escape any consequences but, by all accounts, strengthened his support base.
One of his main tactic is the use of distraction. In each incident, besides denying them, Trump also went on the offensive and gave stakeholders something else to focus on. In some of these instances, the focus was redirected to someone else, while others it remained with him but was redirected to a related but irrelevant issue.
One good example was the case of him groping women. Instead of the attention being focused on the criminal nature of the allegation (which if proven would have ended with him being arrested), Trump redirected the issue to become one of him being a lout. This distraction worked as it was unexpected and the shift was so subtle that the general public would not notice the nudge. Once the lout narrative took off, it would have been…
