“Green against Blue” – Reflections on the 2016 Austrian Presidential Election (TruLies Blog by Ruth Wodak)
The 2016 election campaign President of Austria has been one of the dirtiest political campaigns in recent Austrian history. Especially candidate Norbert Hofer from the right-wing populist FPÖ party frequently used incorrect assertions and populist language, basing his discourse on fear. In this blog post, Prof. Dr. Ruth Wodak explains and analyses which strategies were being used by Hofer and the FPÖ, which societal conflict they build on and who votes for them.
Em. Professor Dr Dr h.c. Ruth Wodak was Distinguished Professor for Discourse Studies at Lancaster University and has remained affiliated with the University of Vienna. A version of this article was first published on E‑International Relations on June 14, 2016.
The project “TruLies – The Truth about Lies on Europe”, aided by the Stiftung Mercator and run by the Institute for European Politics (IEP) in cooperation with Das Progressive Zentrum, has two principal objectives. On the one hand, it strives to deconstruct Eurosceptic and populist prejudices, animosities, and false assertions, by means of social scientifically-grounded analysis. Thus, it aims to contribute to a rationalisation of the public discourse and debate in Germany (and beyond). On the other hand, “TruLies Europe” endeavours to publicly communicate its findings beyond the select circle of scholars to political actors, civil society, and the wider public. You may find further information on our website: http://trulies-europe.de/.
Ruth Wodak’s contribution can be found here.
