Jan. 22, 2025
296: Takeaways from Trump's Inaugural Address: Key Highlights You Can't Miss
In this episode of The PR Breakdown, diving into Donald Trump’s second inaugural address and breaking down the PR strategies, rhetorical moves, and media messages woven throughout. From the decision to move the ceremony indoors to Trump’s subdued, teleprompter-driven delivery, the address was a masterclass in image-conscious storytelling. He leaned heavily into his narrative as the avenging hero, divinely chosen to save America—rhetoric that fires up his base but leaves communicators with plenty to dissect when it comes to the risks of divisive messaging.
Let's also get into the visuals—like Melania’s now-iconic hat and the up-close, tightly framed setting that gave the event a different vibe. Add in some eyebrow-raising claims (hello, "Manifest Destiny" and renaming the Gulf of Mexico), and we’ve got a lot to unpack about how these choices shape public perception. Love him or hate him, this address is full of lessons for anyone working to craft messages that stick. Let’s get into it!
Join my live masterclass on January 29th at 2pm ET and learn the exact formula
I use to turn chaos into control.
Register: https://www.mollymcpherson.com/seven
Master Crisis Communication - Ready to level up your crisis response? Join Molly's intensive masterclass "The 7-Sentence Crisis Cure: From Chaos to Control in Under an Hour," on January 29th at 2pm ET. Watch live as she breaks down a real crisis using her signature Indestructible PR® framework – no theory, just proven tactics that work when everything's on the line. Click here to register now.
Need a Keynote Speaker? Drawing from real-world PR battles, Molly delivers the same engaging stories and hard-won crisis insights from the podcast to your live audience. Her high-energy keynotes blend edge-of-your-seat PR war stories with actionable communication strategies that resonate with leaders, communicators, and teams alike. Click here to book Molly for your next meeting.
Join Molly on Patreon for even deeper dives into celebrity PR strategies and exclusive weekly live sessions! Click here to become a member.
Follow Molly for daily updates and more PR insights:
- TikTok: @mollybmcpherson
- Substack: https://prbreakdown.substack.com/
- Connect with Molly: pillar.io/mollymcpherson...
Chapters
01:16 - Analyzing Trump's Second Inaugural Address
12:04 - Analyzing Trump's Inaugural Address Impact
19:10 - Analyzing Trump's Inaugural Address Fashion
Transcript
WEBVTT
00:00:04.267 --> 00:00:06.610
Hey there, welcome back to the PR Breakdown.
00:00:06.610 --> 00:00:16.013
I'm your host, molly McPherson, and this is the podcast where we dissect the biggest moments in public relations and public discourse.
00:00:16.013 --> 00:00:20.329
We want to figure out what's really going on behind the headlines.
00:00:20.329 --> 00:00:26.742
Today on the podcast, let's just talk about Donald Trump's second inaugural address.
00:00:26.742 --> 00:00:30.146
I wanted to speak about the address only.
00:00:30.146 --> 00:00:50.067
That was my plan for this podcast, but there was so much live and then I move people over to Patreon and we talked about the inauguration.
00:00:50.067 --> 00:00:52.112
My guest was Michael Jammin.
00:00:52.112 --> 00:00:57.469
He is an Emmy-nominated writer, screenwriter, comedy writer.
00:00:57.469 --> 00:00:58.755
He's a good friend of mine.
00:00:58.755 --> 00:01:00.079
He's on TikTok as well.
00:01:00.079 --> 00:01:09.090
He wrote the book A Paper Orchestra and he's worked behind the scenes on so many television shows out there and a lot of the people who attended the live with us were familiar with his work.
00:01:09.090 --> 00:01:11.509
So we had a lot of fun chit-chatting about everything.
00:01:11.509 --> 00:01:26.212
But we spent a lot of time talking about the inauguration and a number of people you know admitted that they didn't watch it, and even friends of mine like I would ask, but me, I had to watch every minute of it.
00:01:26.212 --> 00:01:37.073
Now the recap of the inauguration setting Donald Trump becomes the 45th person to be inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States.
00:01:37.073 --> 00:01:39.969
So wrap your head around that one, if you haven't done that already.
00:01:39.969 --> 00:01:56.129
Also, vice President JD Vance was sworn in and you all know about him he's an author turned politician and now he is the vice president and the ceremony was held at the US Capitol Rotunda, and it was moved indoors due to the weather.
00:01:56.299 --> 00:01:57.927
Now, let's start here, shall we?
00:01:57.927 --> 00:01:58.439
Now?
00:01:58.439 --> 00:02:10.402
Fun fact I mentioned this on the live tonight I attended President Trump's first inaugural address, or his inauguration, back in 2017.
00:02:10.402 --> 00:02:12.586
Had insider access.
00:02:12.586 --> 00:02:14.371
Family member worked for the FBI.
00:02:14.371 --> 00:02:32.048
We were able to get tickets and I told the kids, like we have to go to this inauguration Because, if you remember, at that time when he was inaugurated, it was the same time that there were all these marches for women, if you remember, you know the pink hat era, and all of this was happening in Washington DC.
00:02:32.048 --> 00:02:48.400
So, for my kids and it was just three of my kids, because I think my daughter Rory I can't remember, you know she was at a prep school and I think she had sports or something, I can't remember, but she couldn't join us, but I just had the three kids with us and the inauguration was incredible.
00:02:48.400 --> 00:02:53.420
I mean, we did have tickets that were really really close up front so we could see President Trump right there.
00:02:53.420 --> 00:03:12.352
We saw all the people on the dance and even we were kind of high up on the US Capitol steps and I remember looking back and seeing the crowds and thinking, well, remember looking back and seeing the crowds and thinking, well, this is a big crowd, but I wonder if it's as big as previous crowds, like President Obama's crowd.
00:03:12.352 --> 00:03:24.227
And sure enough, you know, sean Spicer, the press secretary at the time, said Trump was saying that this was the most record-setting crowd ever for inauguration and people from the Obama administration were saying for inauguration.
00:03:24.227 --> 00:03:26.590
And people from the Obama administration were saying that's so fast.
00:03:26.590 --> 00:03:31.074
So then we're hearing that it was moved indoors to the US Capitol rotunda.
00:03:31.495 --> 00:03:42.568
Personally I don't have any inside information, but if you just look at the characteristics of a person and President Trump kind of as a leader, he's very, very concerned with appearances.
00:03:42.568 --> 00:03:45.052
He's very, very concerned with appearances.
00:03:45.052 --> 00:03:46.594
He's very concerned with how he measures.
00:03:46.594 --> 00:03:57.950
He knew that it would be a talking point if the crowds were smaller from his first inauguration, which could be likely because it's a second inauguration.
00:03:57.950 --> 00:04:10.596
But also, yes, he won, but there's still going to be a lot of the coverage would be probably about January 6th and he probably couldn't control even what people in the crowds were doing.
00:04:10.596 --> 00:04:11.840
So there's that element.
00:04:11.840 --> 00:04:15.989
Then there's the other element where this is more vanity.
00:04:15.989 --> 00:04:29.634
But I don't think he wanted to be on the dais with wind also because it was going to be around 27 degrees I think that's the temperature at the time of the inauguration, which is cold, yeah, but it's not that cold.
00:04:29.634 --> 00:04:35.310
There have been other inaugurations that were 27 degrees, but it probably would have cut down on the numbers there.
00:04:35.310 --> 00:04:40.588
But I also think the vanity piece of it was not wanting the hair to be blowing around.
00:04:40.588 --> 00:04:44.341
But also, if you watch the coverage now, there was different coverage.
00:04:44.341 --> 00:04:44.880
I think it was.
00:04:44.880 --> 00:04:56.387
I don't know if it was pool coverage, to be honest, because I was watching the Trump coverage of the inauguration because it was just it was straight audio and it probably was pool coverage.
00:04:56.387 --> 00:05:04.694
Come to think of it, hair was covering one ear and not the other ear and it was covering the ear.
00:05:04.694 --> 00:05:18.670
That was I mean, depending on who you believe was either partially torn off or allegedly torn off, but you couldn't tell during the inauguration and I think I saw either a hearing aid or an earpiece in there.
00:05:18.670 --> 00:05:23.425
Not that there's anything wrong with that, I know plenty of people wear hearing aids but I thought, oh, that's the first time that I've ever seen that.
00:05:23.425 --> 00:05:30.781
So I think bringing it inside made sense because it was a much more controlled environment.
00:05:31.382 --> 00:05:34.228
Now for the speech itself, the tone of the speech.
00:05:34.228 --> 00:05:36.613
It was the subdued Trump.
00:05:36.613 --> 00:05:44.204
It was the similar cadence of Trump when he was speaking at the RNC, you know, the Republican National Convention.
00:05:44.204 --> 00:06:00.365
He was very subdued and part of the reason why I was so subdued is because he was reading from a teleprompter and, based on how he was looking at the teleprompter, it's as if his advisor said to him do not veer off that prompter ever.
00:06:00.365 --> 00:06:03.711
Like you, stay on script the entire time.
00:06:03.711 --> 00:06:12.622
So his head was tilted in a certain way, just looking at the teleprompter, and it was also the ear that was covered was always away from the camera view.
00:06:13.225 --> 00:06:31.648
But that intimate audience also created a different televised dynamic because we didn't have the long shot you know, see the vast crowds and shots of the dais and shots of the crowd and shots of the Capitol.
00:06:31.648 --> 00:06:35.189
It was only indoors and it was that straight shot.
00:06:35.189 --> 00:06:39.853
So it was very intimate and so you could see facial expressions.
00:06:39.853 --> 00:06:49.704
You could see how people were reacting in there, for instance, when President Trump announced that he was going to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
00:06:49.704 --> 00:06:57.362
You could see in the camera shot Hillary Clinton and President Clinton former President Clinton sitting next to her with this very confused look on his face.
00:06:57.362 --> 00:07:06.418
You wouldn't see that in normal coverage if it were outdoors because everybody is so separate, you know, in their seating, but everybody was sitting right on top of each other.
00:07:07.050 --> 00:07:19.365
Now, going back to the tone of the speech, there are a lot of references to this narrative that Trump wanted to be the sort of triumphant hero you know, if you will.
00:07:19.365 --> 00:07:42.937
He cast himself as the avenger of corruption and disorder and chosen by God to restore America, a narrative that fits right into MAGA language and why this matters anytime you see the phrase like divinely chosen or saved by God.
00:07:42.937 --> 00:07:45.966
That is a very strong rhetorical stance.
00:07:45.966 --> 00:07:55.115
It can certainly bolster support from the religious segments of the electorate you know the MAGA electorate, if you will but it also raises eyebrows.
00:07:55.115 --> 00:07:58.512
Trump has a very strong conservative base, if you will, but it also raises eyebrows.
00:07:58.512 --> 00:08:01.516
Trump has a very strong conservative base, a very strong conservative evangelical base.
00:08:01.516 --> 00:08:07.913
So that type of rhetoric plays very, very well with Trump followers.
00:08:08.435 --> 00:08:13.163
Now, next, I want to highlight some takeaways from the address.
00:08:13.163 --> 00:08:16.000
One it is Trump, the avenging hero.
00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:16.562
You know.
00:08:16.562 --> 00:08:23.062
He painted a dark portrait of America and positioned himself as uniquely capable of saving it.
00:08:23.062 --> 00:08:26.934
He talked about his life being spared by God to accomplish this mission.
00:08:26.934 --> 00:08:29.841
You know, when he was in Pennsylvania, butler, pennsylvania.
00:08:29.841 --> 00:08:32.234
It leaves this, you know, rhetorical question.
00:08:32.234 --> 00:08:39.745
You know, does claiming a divine mission unify a nation or does it deepen the cultural divide?
00:08:40.386 --> 00:08:45.736
Next, the veiled and not so veiled shots at the previous leadership.
00:08:45.736 --> 00:08:58.410
He criticized Biden's administration, the handling of disasters, referencing hurricanes and wildfires as if President Biden was controlling wildfires and hurricanes and the management of it.
00:08:58.410 --> 00:09:08.556
The wildfires were a little tricky for President Trump managing them from two weeks ago because right out the gate when they happened, he wanted to pick a fight with the governor of California.
00:09:08.556 --> 00:09:22.182
I mean, there's so much devastation, someone clearly got to Trump to say you've got to stand down.
00:09:22.182 --> 00:09:57.702
You have to stand down on this because part of the reason why that devastation was there and proof by virtue of so many insurance companies canceling policies because they believe in global warming and the global warming was causing the dryness in the grounds and just the weather and the Santa Anta winds, and then they had rain and then they had all these dry spells, and for an administration that is heavy on fossil fuels and not on renewable energy, it's a really tough argument for Trump so he needed to back off.
00:09:57.702 --> 00:10:18.802
Plus, so many people were impacted by those fires, not just wealthy wealthy people, not just famous people and celebrities, middle class people, lower middle class, lower class immigrants so many people there and also to rebuild so much of California, they're going to need the immigrant population.
00:10:18.802 --> 00:10:21.693
So that's another challenge, you know, for Trump.
00:10:21.693 --> 00:10:35.736
Who's allegedly starting all these raids for illegal immigrants, but highly unlikely you're going to see raids around Los Angeles, but again, these shots at Biden and the administration.
00:10:35.736 --> 00:10:42.501
He accused, you know, the government leaders of failing at the basics, from infrastructure to emergency management.
00:10:42.501 --> 00:10:44.113
Fema is struggling.
00:10:44.113 --> 00:10:48.163
I know this as a former FEMA employee and knowing people who work at FEMA.
00:10:48.163 --> 00:10:52.557
They're struggling just for money and resources and people.
00:10:52.918 --> 00:10:58.740
So the subtext for anyone working in PR communication is it's classic contrast messaging.
00:10:58.740 --> 00:11:03.481
It's highlighting failures of your predecessors to justify your future moves.
00:11:03.481 --> 00:11:06.538
That is classic Trump.
00:11:06.538 --> 00:11:10.520
This is how he does a lot of his messaging.
00:11:10.520 --> 00:11:12.498
It's by taking shots at everyone.
00:11:12.498 --> 00:11:15.840
Next, it's the emphasis on manifest destiny.
00:11:15.840 --> 00:11:19.432
When he said manifest destiny, my first reaction was wait a minute.
00:11:19.432 --> 00:11:20.592
I had to go back into school.
00:11:20.592 --> 00:11:22.735
Like, wait a minute, what does manifest destiny mean?
00:11:22.735 --> 00:11:25.177
And then you're like, oh yeah, expansion.
00:11:25.177 --> 00:11:35.745
So he's reviving this 19th century idea of manifest destiny, pointing to a future that includes placing American flags on Mars.
00:11:35.865 --> 00:11:38.267
And did you see Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX?
00:11:38.267 --> 00:11:41.833
Like he stands up and he's like cheering on, like so goofy.
00:11:41.833 --> 00:11:47.224
And then Elon Musk who spoke at an inaugural event with the Nazi salute.
00:11:47.224 --> 00:11:51.230
A lot of people on my live tonight were asking, like what kind of PR help does Elon Musk need?
00:11:51.230 --> 00:11:54.096
He doesn't need any PR help because he is on his own.
00:11:54.096 --> 00:11:55.399
It's like he's on Mars.
00:11:55.399 --> 00:11:57.753
There's nothing he can do to like clean up that image.
00:11:57.753 --> 00:11:59.638
His image is just who he is.
00:11:59.638 --> 00:12:08.782
But it makes me wonder how long President Trump is going to want to align himself with people like Elon Musk.
00:12:08.782 --> 00:12:18.967
Because here's an interesting thing about leadership and about power People who are in power, they're like the master of power, right, but you never want to overpower the master.
00:12:18.967 --> 00:12:23.139
You never want to be smarter than the master, better than the master, anything like that.
00:12:23.139 --> 00:12:26.414
And I think Elon Musk has to walk a fine line there.
00:12:26.414 --> 00:12:32.671
So we'll see if in the future, if he is as close to Trump as he is right now.
00:12:33.451 --> 00:12:40.676
But more controversially, suggesting reclaiming the Panama Canal, and he named some numbers that were inaccurate.
00:12:40.676 --> 00:12:48.280
But, oh my gosh, mount Denali to back to Mount McKinley, but the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
00:12:48.280 --> 00:12:52.264
Like I said, hillary Clinton laughing at that, that was a head scratcher moment.
00:12:52.264 --> 00:12:57.707
It's like is this a literal plan or is it just a symbolic, like chest thumping line?
00:12:57.707 --> 00:13:01.419
And with Trump, honestly, it's hard to say.
00:13:01.419 --> 00:13:03.235
It is hard to say.
00:13:03.931 --> 00:13:06.659
Next, false or dubious claims.
00:13:06.659 --> 00:13:10.000
Like I said, he overstated the US death toll in the building of the Panama Canal.
00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:12.576
Most of those deaths were from foreign workers.
00:13:12.576 --> 00:13:13.519
Many were from France.
00:13:13.519 --> 00:13:18.419
He also claimed that many undocumented immigrants come from prisons and mental institutions.
00:13:18.419 --> 00:13:34.466
There's no solid evidence to support this and many people if you saw this online or even in the coverage, when he was at the religious service, the bishop who stood up on that pulpit and she talked about how scared people are with this administration.
00:13:34.466 --> 00:13:38.971
People are with this administration.
00:13:38.971 --> 00:13:47.244
You know people who are I'm paraphrasing here LGBTQ and trans, how they're worried for their safety and then talked about the people who bus our tables, who work the overnight shift, who work as janitors.
00:13:47.244 --> 00:13:50.337
You know talking about all those people who take those jobs, those low-level jobs.
00:13:50.337 --> 00:13:55.575
Those are immigrants, are undocumented workers, she said.
00:13:55.575 --> 00:13:56.957
Many of them pay taxes.
00:13:56.957 --> 00:13:59.783
They're not all criminals and prisoners.
00:13:59.783 --> 00:14:01.874
I mean the number is so minor.
00:14:02.274 --> 00:14:07.793
It was a public rebuke from the pulpit and Trump just looks straight ahead.
00:14:07.793 --> 00:14:08.294
Now.
00:14:08.294 --> 00:14:15.552
These typical fact checkable lines might cause friction between the administration and the press when he continues to do this.
00:14:15.552 --> 00:14:18.817
Every time Trump does this, he will be called out for it.
00:14:18.817 --> 00:14:23.485
There is no denying that, and it will happen right out the gate.
00:14:23.485 --> 00:14:30.292
Are we going to be a society that accepts misinformation or do we call it out even more Because we're starting to hear it more?
00:14:30.611 --> 00:14:35.523
Next is the weaponization of government, but no explicit retribution.
00:14:35.523 --> 00:14:42.515
So he slammed the quote radical and corrupt establishment and vowed to end the weaponization of the Justice Department.
00:14:42.515 --> 00:14:47.059
He felt that the Biden administration weaponized the Justice Department against him.
00:14:47.059 --> 00:14:55.447
But why it was difficult for him to do that is because he's someone who is known for targeting opponents.
00:14:55.447 --> 00:14:58.691
So he didn't explicitly pledge to go after his political enemies.
00:14:58.691 --> 00:15:02.619
Many anticipate investigations that might happen anyway.
00:15:02.619 --> 00:15:15.456
So the key PR angle here is you know, trump frames himself as a victim of government overreach, while many critics are pointing out that he has a history of pushing the DOJ to target opponents.
00:15:15.456 --> 00:15:19.744
So is it contradiction or cunning strategy?
00:15:19.744 --> 00:15:20.205
All right Now.
00:15:20.205 --> 00:15:27.033
So here are some of the interesting moments that I noticed watching because, yes, like I said, I did listen to the speech.
00:15:27.033 --> 00:15:45.144
Now for the attendees of the inauguration itself, I mean, there were several former presidents who were there Obama, bush, you know, clinton and Biden, the array of tense expressions mixed with the smirking of President Obama and President Bush smirking at each other.
00:15:45.144 --> 00:15:56.720
President Clinton looked confused most of the time, like just kind of stunned, and Biden sat there with face for a lot of it, chief Justice, sworn both Trump and JD Vance.
00:15:57.964 --> 00:16:08.306
The Carrie Underwood performance we talked about it in the live and I had asked people if they saw this, because I really felt like I was the only person, because I saw a lot of information out there online about Carrie Underwood.
00:16:08.306 --> 00:16:11.341
Some people were praising her singing, some people, of course, making fun of her.
00:16:11.341 --> 00:16:15.474
The Daily Mail had an article saying that she threw a snit fit because of the music.
00:16:15.474 --> 00:16:22.490
Now, if you watched it, there was like over a minute delay where they announced Carrie Underwood, she walks down and then she just waits there.
00:16:22.490 --> 00:16:24.195
She was holding the mic because they were waiting.
00:16:24.195 --> 00:16:27.410
She was waiting for the music to play.
00:16:27.811 --> 00:16:38.491
But in these inaugural events or if there's any event at the Capitol, they have a tape that plays along with their live singing.
00:16:38.491 --> 00:16:43.836
And that's not just Carrie Underwood, that's all the artists do that, you know, for any administration.
00:16:43.836 --> 00:17:03.642
They do that because it is tough to be such a natural singer in the open environment like that indoors, and the planning was so quick, so you could see that everything wasn't effortless in terms of the flow and the planning.
00:17:03.642 --> 00:17:09.122
And this was a real botched job, because I think what they were struggling with was the backing tape.
00:17:09.122 --> 00:17:15.238
How do we sync the backing tape with the music when it's in this hall, with the acoustics, how they are?
00:17:15.238 --> 00:17:19.451
And then Carrie Underwood was singing over that backing tape.
00:17:19.451 --> 00:17:27.758
Maybe it was just me, but I thought I saw that tape and before her, like the timing was definitely off, I felt for her.
00:17:27.758 --> 00:17:29.284
I think she sounded amazing.
00:17:30.066 --> 00:17:39.633
I can't imagine how stressful that would be and if she threw a hissy fit leaving there, it's like you know what Welcome to the Trump administration, because that's how a lot of the messes are.
00:17:39.633 --> 00:17:41.878
But also on day one of administration.
00:17:41.878 --> 00:17:43.750
I mean that is tough to get that organized.
00:17:43.750 --> 00:17:47.501
A lot of people were really calling her out for performing at this inauguration.
00:17:47.501 --> 00:17:49.273
A lot of people disappointed in Snoop.
00:17:49.273 --> 00:17:52.521
They're saying you know he would do anything for a buck.
00:17:52.521 --> 00:17:58.623
But I have to give Carrie Underwood some credit there, because that would be incredibly stressful.
00:17:58.970 --> 00:18:01.211
Then there was the fashion Melania.
00:18:01.211 --> 00:18:03.199
That hat, oh my goodness.
00:18:03.199 --> 00:18:04.675
And that hat was pulled solo.
00:18:04.675 --> 00:18:07.057
You could barely see her eyes.
00:18:07.057 --> 00:18:10.038
Make of that what you will.
00:18:10.038 --> 00:18:11.050
On the live.
00:18:11.050 --> 00:18:18.455
Many people said she looked like the Hamburglar Spy versus spy, that magazine, which made me laugh.
00:18:18.455 --> 00:18:24.317
But so many people oh my gosh, we're making jokes about that hat that the boys were playing Frisbee with it.
00:18:24.317 --> 00:18:27.298
Afterwards I had to look at it and think, okay, what was she thinking?
00:18:27.298 --> 00:18:28.200
What was behind the hat?
00:18:28.200 --> 00:18:35.123
And if you saw President Trump try to kiss Melania, he couldn't kiss her under the hat.
00:18:35.123 --> 00:18:36.222
He missed her lips.
00:18:36.222 --> 00:18:39.284
Me thinks that that hat was definitely intentional.
00:18:39.284 --> 00:18:50.888
The outfit that she wore looked like it could have been worn for cold weather in her inauguration outfit anyway, but she did not show even an ounce of skin, which she didn't for the first inauguration either.
00:18:50.888 --> 00:18:56.151
I loved her inauguration outfit the first time that light blue with the gloves and that cowl neck.
00:18:56.151 --> 00:18:57.172
It was absolutely beautiful.
00:18:57.172 --> 00:19:15.367
So she looked a little pinned in, you know, for this inauguration, but she is so checked out of all of it you could tell it's almost as if she walked in and then she walked out, you know, and went right back to New York.
00:19:15.367 --> 00:19:16.570
But that hat was absolutely epic.
00:19:17.115 --> 00:19:20.142
Also, barron Trump, president Trump's son with Melania.
00:19:20.142 --> 00:19:22.928
He drew a lot of social media buzz.
00:19:22.928 --> 00:19:26.496
You know a lot of people always talk about how tall he is, because he's taller than most people in that room.
00:19:26.496 --> 00:19:27.519
He's taller than his parents.
00:19:27.519 --> 00:19:28.862
He's a very, very tall kid.
00:19:28.862 --> 00:19:30.586
But I saw clips of him.
00:19:30.586 --> 00:19:33.689
You know people were applauding him and he kind of wanted more applause.
00:19:33.689 --> 00:19:36.737
So he's definitely stepping out of the shadows.
00:19:36.737 --> 00:19:37.498
He's in college now.
00:19:37.498 --> 00:19:42.746
I think he's at NYU and I think we're going to see a lot more of Barron Trump Now.
00:19:43.185 --> 00:19:48.619
You know, when we talk about the themes, the PR strategy, you know, again, this is all about America first.
00:19:48.619 --> 00:19:52.897
That's what the Trump administration the second time around is going to be this presidency.
00:19:52.897 --> 00:19:57.357
He's revisiting a lot of the same slogans, banking on the same brand recognition.
00:19:57.357 --> 00:20:00.689
You know it shows like the comms angle on this.
00:20:00.689 --> 00:20:03.195
You know lean on a tagline that works.
00:20:03.195 --> 00:20:04.819
You know make America great again.
00:20:04.819 --> 00:20:06.163
It's brilliant, it works.
00:20:06.163 --> 00:20:09.845
You put it on a hat, you put it on a color, it makes sense.
00:20:09.845 --> 00:20:12.477
You know people remember it, love it or hate it, people know it.
00:20:12.939 --> 00:20:15.628
The speech was also really about unity versus division.
00:20:15.628 --> 00:20:18.478
There's a lot of division obviously between two sides here.
00:20:18.478 --> 00:20:24.209
Trump wants to really coalesce the unity within his base, but also the moderates.
00:20:24.209 --> 00:20:26.343
He wants to bring other people over as well.
00:20:26.343 --> 00:20:33.201
Then, of course, the divine providence messaging, you know speaking that his life was spared for this greater calling.
00:20:33.201 --> 00:20:41.271
We'll see if he will keep language up like that, but you know Trump's not known for striking emotional chords.
00:20:41.271 --> 00:20:44.140
He certainly did in this inaugural address.
00:20:44.140 --> 00:21:06.770
He repeated we will not allow that to happen, which appeals to fear and determination communities, which might be the effort to expand or cement that electoral support beyond his typical base for other Republicans, because they don't want to lose a house in two more years.
00:21:07.252 --> 00:21:18.327
So how this will likely play out in the media focusing on fact-checking, with the potential controversies over false claims, like even from the speech, like the Panama Canal death toll, the prison narratives.
00:21:18.327 --> 00:21:21.964
The alternative fact storyline might come back again.
00:21:21.964 --> 00:21:27.286
So for PR pros out there, we now need to anticipate any ongoing corrections.
00:21:27.286 --> 00:21:32.738
Is any company out there, a spokesperson, just going to do the Trump method and just kind of create their numbers?
00:21:32.738 --> 00:21:42.887
We're going to have a lot of diplomatic ripples, especially when he's renaming bodies of waters and mountains and trying to reclaim land like the Panama Canal.
00:21:42.887 --> 00:21:51.987
There's going to be some implications there and there's certainly going to be domestic policy implications as it relates to immigration, climate measures he's undoing a lot of.
00:21:51.987 --> 00:21:57.646
You know what Biden did for renewable energy, but what is the public perception going to be?
00:21:57.646 --> 00:21:59.980
You know, will this re-energize his base?
00:21:59.980 --> 00:22:03.298
Does it scare off the moderates out there?
00:22:04.019 --> 00:22:15.126
So big question for communicators how to respond to leaders or companies or brands who want to copy the Trump brand of communication.
00:22:15.126 --> 00:22:20.546
Are you fact-checking aggressively or focusing on the emotional resonance that's driving supporters?
00:22:20.546 --> 00:22:26.132
Are you just going to say anything to rev up your base or are you going to stick to the facts?
00:22:26.132 --> 00:22:33.288
But maybe there isn't going to be as much of a push from the public perception because of a Trump presidency.
00:22:33.288 --> 00:22:37.800
Also, you know the moral, the ethical angles here.
00:22:37.800 --> 00:22:52.799
When you're looking in, you know if you were in that crowd at the inauguration, was it a surge of patriotism or did it feel like a chill at the thought of an apocalyptic undertone here?
00:22:52.799 --> 00:23:00.982
You know, if you're anyone who's not a white male, do you have something to worry about and you want to have that empathy check?
00:23:00.982 --> 00:23:12.887
I think if you're a communicator, this speech might provide reassurance for some who feel the system is stacked against them, but for others it could be like a dog whistle for authoritarian tendencies.
00:23:13.375 --> 00:23:18.644
There was just so much going on there and I found it enjoyable to watch.
00:23:18.644 --> 00:23:19.275
I really did.
00:23:19.275 --> 00:23:29.339
My first note was Lauren Sanchez, jeff Bezos' fiance, who someone on my live tonight told me their wedding is going to be in Aspen, colorado.
00:23:29.339 --> 00:23:30.539
It's gonna be $600 million.
00:23:30.539 --> 00:23:33.701
And Michael Jammon, who was on my live tonight.
00:23:33.701 --> 00:23:36.303
He said how many crab cakes do you need?
00:23:36.303 --> 00:23:39.263
Like $600 million?
00:23:39.263 --> 00:23:47.007
That's crazy money Between the plastic surgery and the bustier, like the white bustier.
00:23:47.007 --> 00:23:50.608
And you saw the memes of like Mark Zuckerberg, who was sitting next to her, like looking down at her chest.
00:23:50.608 --> 00:23:52.470
That was interesting to me.
00:00:04.267 --> 00:00:06.610
00:00:06.610 --> 00:00:16.013
00:00:16.013 --> 00:00:20.329
00:00:20.329 --> 00:00:26.742
00:00:26.742 --> 00:00:30.146
00:00:30.146 --> 00:00:50.067
00:00:50.067 --> 00:00:52.112
00:00:52.112 --> 00:00:57.469
00:00:57.469 --> 00:00:58.755
00:00:58.755 --> 00:01:00.079
00:01:00.079 --> 00:01:09.090
00:01:09.090 --> 00:01:11.509
00:01:11.509 --> 00:01:26.212
00:01:26.212 --> 00:01:37.073
00:01:37.073 --> 00:01:39.969
00:01:39.969 --> 00:01:56.129
00:01:56.299 --> 00:01:57.927
00:01:57.927 --> 00:01:58.439
00:01:58.439 --> 00:02:10.402
00:02:10.402 --> 00:02:12.586
00:02:12.586 --> 00:02:14.371
00:02:14.371 --> 00:02:32.048
00:02:32.048 --> 00:02:48.400
00:02:48.400 --> 00:02:53.420
00:02:53.420 --> 00:03:12.352
00:03:12.352 --> 00:03:24.227
00:03:24.227 --> 00:03:26.590
00:03:26.590 --> 00:03:31.074
00:03:31.495 --> 00:03:42.568
00:03:42.568 --> 00:03:45.052
00:03:45.052 --> 00:03:46.594
00:03:46.594 --> 00:03:57.950
00:03:57.950 --> 00:04:10.596
00:04:10.596 --> 00:04:11.840
00:04:11.840 --> 00:04:15.989
00:04:15.989 --> 00:04:29.634
00:04:29.634 --> 00:04:35.310
00:04:35.310 --> 00:04:40.588
00:04:40.588 --> 00:04:44.341
00:04:44.341 --> 00:04:44.880
00:04:44.880 --> 00:04:56.387
00:04:56.387 --> 00:05:04.694
00:05:04.694 --> 00:05:18.670
00:05:18.670 --> 00:05:23.425
00:05:23.425 --> 00:05:30.781
00:05:31.382 --> 00:05:34.228
00:05:34.228 --> 00:05:36.613
00:05:36.613 --> 00:05:44.204
00:05:44.204 --> 00:06:00.365
00:06:00.365 --> 00:06:03.711
00:06:03.711 --> 00:06:12.622
00:06:13.225 --> 00:06:31.648
00:06:31.648 --> 00:06:35.189
00:06:35.189 --> 00:06:39.853
00:06:39.853 --> 00:06:49.704
00:06:49.704 --> 00:06:57.362
00:06:57.362 --> 00:07:06.418
00:07:07.050 --> 00:07:19.365
00:07:19.365 --> 00:07:42.937
00:07:42.937 --> 00:07:45.966
00:07:45.966 --> 00:07:55.115
00:07:55.115 --> 00:07:58.512
00:07:58.512 --> 00:08:01.516
00:08:01.516 --> 00:08:07.913
00:08:08.435 --> 00:08:13.163
00:08:13.163 --> 00:08:16.000
00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:16.562
00:08:16.562 --> 00:08:23.062
00:08:23.062 --> 00:08:26.934
00:08:26.934 --> 00:08:29.841
00:08:29.841 --> 00:08:32.234
00:08:32.234 --> 00:08:39.745
00:08:40.386 --> 00:08:45.736
00:08:45.736 --> 00:08:58.410
00:08:58.410 --> 00:09:08.556
00:09:08.556 --> 00:09:22.182
00:09:22.182 --> 00:09:57.702
00:09:57.702 --> 00:10:18.802
00:10:18.802 --> 00:10:21.693
00:10:21.693 --> 00:10:35.736
00:10:35.736 --> 00:10:42.501
00:10:42.501 --> 00:10:44.113
00:10:44.113 --> 00:10:48.163
00:10:48.163 --> 00:10:52.557
00:10:52.918 --> 00:10:58.740
00:10:58.740 --> 00:11:03.481
00:11:03.481 --> 00:11:06.538
00:11:06.538 --> 00:11:10.520
00:11:10.520 --> 00:11:12.498
00:11:12.498 --> 00:11:15.840
00:11:15.840 --> 00:11:19.432
00:11:19.432 --> 00:11:20.592
00:11:20.592 --> 00:11:22.735
00:11:22.735 --> 00:11:25.177
00:11:25.177 --> 00:11:35.745
00:11:35.865 --> 00:11:38.267
00:11:38.267 --> 00:11:41.833
00:11:41.833 --> 00:11:47.224
00:11:47.224 --> 00:11:51.230
00:11:51.230 --> 00:11:54.096
00:11:54.096 --> 00:11:55.399
00:11:55.399 --> 00:11:57.753
00:11:57.753 --> 00:11:59.638
00:11:59.638 --> 00:12:08.782
00:12:08.782 --> 00:12:18.967
00:12:18.967 --> 00:12:23.139
00:12:23.139 --> 00:12:26.414
00:12:26.414 --> 00:12:32.671
00:12:33.451 --> 00:12:40.676
00:12:40.676 --> 00:12:48.280
00:12:48.280 --> 00:12:52.264
00:12:52.264 --> 00:12:57.707
00:12:57.707 --> 00:13:01.419
00:13:01.419 --> 00:13:03.235
00:13:03.931 --> 00:13:06.659
00:13:06.659 --> 00:13:10.000
00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:12.576
00:13:12.576 --> 00:13:13.519
00:13:13.519 --> 00:13:18.419
00:13:18.419 --> 00:13:34.466
00:13:34.466 --> 00:13:38.971
00:13:38.971 --> 00:13:47.244
00:13:47.244 --> 00:13:50.337
00:13:50.337 --> 00:13:55.575
00:13:55.575 --> 00:13:56.957
00:13:56.957 --> 00:13:59.783
00:13:59.783 --> 00:14:01.874
00:14:02.274 --> 00:14:07.793
00:14:07.793 --> 00:14:08.294
00:14:08.294 --> 00:14:15.552
00:14:15.552 --> 00:14:18.817
00:14:18.817 --> 00:14:23.485
00:14:23.485 --> 00:14:30.292
00:14:30.611 --> 00:14:35.523
00:14:35.523 --> 00:14:42.515
00:14:42.515 --> 00:14:47.059
00:14:47.059 --> 00:14:55.447
00:14:55.447 --> 00:14:58.691
00:14:58.691 --> 00:15:02.619
00:15:02.619 --> 00:15:15.456
00:15:15.456 --> 00:15:19.744
00:15:19.744 --> 00:15:20.205
00:15:20.205 --> 00:15:27.033
00:15:27.033 --> 00:15:45.144
00:15:45.144 --> 00:15:56.720
00:15:57.964 --> 00:16:08.306
00:16:08.306 --> 00:16:11.341
00:16:11.341 --> 00:16:15.474
00:16:15.474 --> 00:16:22.490
00:16:22.490 --> 00:16:24.195
00:16:24.195 --> 00:16:27.410
00:16:27.811 --> 00:16:38.491
00:16:38.491 --> 00:16:43.836
00:16:43.836 --> 00:17:03.642
00:17:03.642 --> 00:17:09.122
00:17:09.122 --> 00:17:15.238
00:17:15.238 --> 00:17:19.451
00:17:19.451 --> 00:17:27.758
00:17:27.758 --> 00:17:29.284
00:17:30.066 --> 00:17:39.633
00:17:39.633 --> 00:17:41.878
00:17:41.878 --> 00:17:43.750
00:17:43.750 --> 00:17:47.501
00:17:47.501 --> 00:17:49.273
00:17:49.273 --> 00:17:52.521
00:17:52.521 --> 00:17:58.623
00:17:58.970 --> 00:18:01.211
00:18:01.211 --> 00:18:03.199
00:18:03.199 --> 00:18:04.675
00:18:04.675 --> 00:18:07.057
00:18:07.057 --> 00:18:10.038
00:18:10.038 --> 00:18:11.050
00:18:11.050 --> 00:18:18.455
00:18:18.455 --> 00:18:24.317
00:18:24.317 --> 00:18:27.298
00:18:27.298 --> 00:18:28.200
00:18:28.200 --> 00:18:35.123
00:18:35.123 --> 00:18:36.222
00:18:36.222 --> 00:18:39.284
00:18:39.284 --> 00:18:50.888
00:18:50.888 --> 00:18:56.151
00:18:56.151 --> 00:18:57.172
00:18:57.172 --> 00:19:15.367
00:19:15.367 --> 00:19:16.570
00:19:17.115 --> 00:19:20.142
00:19:20.142 --> 00:19:22.928
00:19:22.928 --> 00:19:26.496
00:19:26.496 --> 00:19:27.519
00:19:27.519 --> 00:19:28.862
00:19:28.862 --> 00:19:30.586
00:19:30.586 --> 00:19:33.689
00:19:33.689 --> 00:19:36.737
00:19:36.737 --> 00:19:37.498
00:19:37.498 --> 00:19:42.746
00:19:43.185 --> 00:19:48.619
00:19:48.619 --> 00:19:52.897
00:19:52.897 --> 00:19:57.357
00:19:57.357 --> 00:20:00.689
00:20:00.689 --> 00:20:03.195
00:20:03.195 --> 00:20:04.819
00:20:04.819 --> 00:20:06.163
00:20:06.163 --> 00:20:09.845
00:20:09.845 --> 00:20:12.477
00:20:12.939 --> 00:20:15.628
00:20:15.628 --> 00:20:18.478
00:20:18.478 --> 00:20:24.209
00:20:24.209 --> 00:20:26.343
00:20:26.343 --> 00:20:33.201
00:20:33.201 --> 00:20:41.271
00:20:41.271 --> 00:20:44.140
00:20:44.140 --> 00:21:06.770
00:21:07.252 --> 00:21:18.327
00:21:18.327 --> 00:21:21.964
00:21:21.964 --> 00:21:27.286
00:21:27.286 --> 00:21:32.738
00:21:32.738 --> 00:21:42.887
00:21:42.887 --> 00:21:51.987
00:21:51.987 --> 00:21:57.646
00:21:57.646 --> 00:21:59.980
00:21:59.980 --> 00:22:03.298
00:22:04.019 --> 00:22:15.126
00:22:15.126 --> 00:22:20.546
00:22:20.546 --> 00:22:26.132
00:22:26.132 --> 00:22:33.288
00:22:33.288 --> 00:22:37.800
00:22:37.800 --> 00:22:52.799
00:22:52.799 --> 00:23:00.982
00:23:00.982 --> 00:23:12.887
00:23:13.375 --> 00:23:18.644
00:23:18.644 --> 00:23:19.275
00:23:19.275 --> 00:23:29.339
00:23:29.339 --> 00:23:30.539
00:23:30.539 --> 00:23:33.701
00:23:33.701 --> 00:23:36.303
00:23:36.303 --> 00:23:39.263
00:23:39.263 --> 00:23:47.007
00:23:47.007 --> 00:23:50.608
00:23:50.608 --> 00:23:52.470