Tweets from the Bully Pulpit: President Trump’s Twitter Habits and His Popularity

Author

Josh Pavek

Date of Award

5-2018

Document Type

Thesis

Department

Political Science

First Advisor

Dr. Patrick Donnay

Abstract

One way that a President can use their position to indirectly effect legislation is through the messaging they present to the public. This idea has been termed the Bully Pulpit by political scholars and we have seen multiple different strategies for using this power. President Trump has shown a disdain for traditional media environments, opting instead to use Twitter as his primary means of communicating with the public in combination with some traditional methods as well. Is Twitter an effective use of the presidential office and the Bully Pulpit? I examine the effectiveness of Trump's communication methods by comparing his Twitter habits, in number of tweets per day, with his approval ratings for that same period. There appeared to be little direct correlation between President Trump's tweets and any change in approval ratings. If a President wishes to improve their approval ratings, they will have to do more than tweet about issues. However, even a particularly prolific tweeter like President Trump will see little backlash from their Twitter habits alone.

Recommended Citation

Pavek, Josh, "Tweets from the Bully Pulpit: President Trump’s Twitter Habits and His Popularity" (2018). Political Science Theses and Capstones. 49.
https://pines.bemidjistate.edu/capstone-polisci/49