City University of Hong Kong
CityU Announcement Portal (CAP)
City University of Hong Kong
CityU Announcement Portal (CAP)

Posting Detail

COM Research Seminar: Charm: How Magnetic Personalities Shape Global Politics by Dr Julia SONNEVEND
(POSTED: 2024-10-29 11:02 AM )
COM Research Seminar: COM Research Seminar: Charm: How Magnetic Personalities Shape Global Politics by Dr Julia SONNEVEND, The New School for Social Research, New York. Date & Time: 8 November 2024, 10:00 am- 11:30 am (HKT). Venue: ZOOM, please click https://cityu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIsf-qqqDMiH9AanKijR7yY7_TbXHslUWty#/registration to register for the seminar by 8 November 2024. Language: English. Abstract Politics is a site of performance, and contemporary politicians often perform the role of a regular person—perhaps someone we would like to have a beer with. They win elections not because of the elevated rhetorical performances we often associate with charisma (“ask not what your country can do for you”), but because of something more ordinary and relatable. This everyday magic spell that many politicians cast using mass and social media is what I call “charm.” This talk will explore charm (and the related “charm offensive”) as a keyword of contemporary global politics. Successful political leaders deploy this form of personal magnetism—which relies on proximity to political tribes and manifests across a variety of media platforms—to appear authentic and accessible in their quest for power. I consider how charm (or the lack of it) is wielded as a political tool, and the ways charm is weaponized to shape the international image of a country. I argue that charm will shape the future of politics worldwide, as political values will be increasingly embodied by mediated personalities. These figures will rise and fall, often fading into irrelevance; but if we do not understand charm’s political power, we cannot grasp diplomacy and politics in the 21st century.. About the speaker: Julia Sonnevend is Associate Professor of Sociology and Communication at The New School in New York. She is a sociologist of culture and media, focusing on the events, icons, symbols and charismatic personalities of public life. Sonnevend is the author of Charm: How Magnetic Personalities Shape Global Politics (Princeton University Press), Stories Without Borders: The Berlin Wall and the Making of a Global Iconic Event (Oxford University Press), and co-editor of Education and Social Media: Toward a Digital Future (MIT Press). Her work has been published in interdisciplinary peer-reviewed journals including New Media & Society; Information, Communication & Society; International Journal of Press/Politics; Media, Culture & Society and the American Journal of Cultural Sociology. Her ideas have been featured in a wide range of media outlets, including Time magazine, NPR , BBC Newshour, and Review of Democracy. Sonnevend received her PhD in Communications from Columbia University, her Master of Laws degree from Yale Law School, and her Juris Doctorate and Master of Arts degrees in German Studies and Aesthetics from Eötvös Loránd University Budapest. She grew up in Budapest, Hungary.For enquiries, please call 34428677.
Category:
Academic Seminar
Department:
Department of Media and Communication (COM)
Venue:
Zoom
Start Date:
2024-11-08 10:00
End Date:
2024-11-08 11:30
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