Charisma in contemporary European and American media discourses

This chapter examines the reflection of political charisma in the media discourses of Germany, France, the UK and the US, in order to identify potential similarities in media portrayals of charismatic figures such as Franz Josef Strauss and Donald Trump, as well as Angela Merkel and Margaret Thatcher, where such parallels may exist. The focus will be on whether certain speech and behavioural characteristics of charisma can be identified as typical of German, French, British, and American contexts, or whether the individuality of each political figure remains decisive.