Title: Understanding Presidential Rhetoric: Lessons from the Past
Presenter: Ben Voth, PhD, Southern Methodist University
Date/Time: Monday, February 24, 6-7 pm EST
Description: Professor of rhetoric, Ben Voth details his 2024 book The Presidential Rhetoric of Woodrow Wilson, Warren Harding, and Calvin Coolidge by Lexington books—how these three historical examples from the 20th century help us better understand American Presidents and the larger system of academic rankings often assigned to these leaders in the season of Presidents Day on Feb 17. Voth examines in the book and in this webinar how Jeffrey Tulis’ seminal notion of “The Rhetorical Presidency” combined with traditions of rankings originated by Arthur Schlesinger have arguably deformed our present abilities to understand the rhetoric of the American Presidency. The reciprocally high ranking of Woodrow Wilson and exceptionally low ranking of Warren Harding provided a key basis for understanding how the current system of assessing presidents should change. This webinar is valuable for teachers of political communication and will provide useful examples of Presidential Rhetoric such as Warren Harding’s largely unknown address on Race in Birmingham Alabama in 1921. Attendees will understand the unique Christian perspectives of Wilson, Harding and Coolidge and how they were critical to their political advocacy. Teachers will also be familiarized with different types of presidential rankings such as C-SPAN.
Registration Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/yWaLHKKVS9623Td222IBYg
Learn more about Dr. Voth here: https://www.smu.edu/dedman/about/administrative-directory/voth