Selective Amnesia and Racial Transcendence in News Coverage of President Obama’s Inauguration

Kristen Hoerl; Casey R. Kelly

doi:10.1080/00335630.2012.663499

Selective Amnesia and Racial Transcendence in News Coverage of President Obama’s Inauguration

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

The mainstream press frequently characterized the election of President Barack Obama the first African American US President as the realization of Martin Luther King's dream, thus crafting a postracial narrative of national transcendence. I argue that this routine characterization of Obama's election functions as a site for the production of selective amnesia, a form of remembrance that routinely negates and silences those who would contest hegemonic narratives of national progress and unity.

Original language	American English
Journal	Quarterly Journal of Speech
Volume	98
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/00335630.2012.663499
State	Published - Jan 1 2012

Keywords

Critical Rhetoric
Selective Amnesia
Transcendence
Postracism
Barack Obama

Disciplines

Communication
Critical and Cultural Studies
Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication
Journalism Studies
Social Influence and Political Communication

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Selective Amnesia and Racial Transcendence in News Coverage of PrFinal published version, 553 KBLicense: Unspecified
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Cite this

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abstract = " The mainstream press frequently characterized the election of President Barack Obama the first African American US President as the realization of Martin Luther King's dream, thus crafting a postracial narrative of national transcendence. I argue that this routine characterization of Obama's election functions as a site for the production of selective amnesia, a form of remembrance that routinely negates and silences those who would contest hegemonic narratives of national progress and unity.",

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N2 - The mainstream press frequently characterized the election of President Barack Obama the first African American US President as the realization of Martin Luther King's dream, thus crafting a postracial narrative of national transcendence. I argue that this routine characterization of Obama's election functions as a site for the production of selective amnesia, a form of remembrance that routinely negates and silences those who would contest hegemonic narratives of national progress and unity.

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KW - Critical Rhetoric

KW - Selective Amnesia

KW - Transcendence

KW - Postracism

KW - Barack Obama

UR - https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/ccom_papers/88

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DO - 10.1080/00335630.2012.663499

M3 - Article

VL - 98

JO - Quarterly Journal of Speech

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ER -

Selective Amnesia and Racial Transcendence in News Coverage of President Obama’s Inauguration

Abstract

Keywords

Disciplines

Access to Document

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