Running Head: A Man Marked by Media 1

A Man Marked by Media

Giselle Amador

Arizona State University

A Man Marked by Media 2

Abstract

The following essay is a rhetorical analysis of a Donald Trump drawing that was issued in

Rolling Stones magazine. The piece is named “The Madness of Donald Trump” and the artist is

Matt Taibbi. He comically brings attention to some of Trump's infamous characteristics and

appearance.

​ onald Trump, anti-Trump, issues

Keywords: D
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Hearing the words “President Donald Trump” will spark different emotions amongst

different individuals. Some will proudly claim him as their President and others will go as far as

saying that he is #notmypresident. The drawing created by Matt Taibbi in “The Madness of

Donald Trump”, mocks and ridicules Donald Trump’s actions, not only is it ridiculing his actions

but also his appearance. The purpose of the drawing is to highlight some of Trump’s faults and

controversial behavior while criticizing his qualifications as a president. The drawing has a plain

white background, which makes Trump’s portrait the only focus and eliminates any distractions

that could take away from the “real” picture. The portrait illustrates him having extremely orange

skin, an evident toupee, a restraining jacket, a phone in his hand that managed to be left out of

the restraining jacket, and more.  

When it comes to the topic of the United States

current President, Donald Trump, most of us will

readily agree that he has caused a divide amongst the

nation. Where this agreement usually ends, however,

is on the question of how far will people’s political

views allow our country to lose all morals of racism

and humanity? While some are convinced that Trump

will “Make America Great Again”, others believe that

he is the worst thing that has happened to our country

in recent years. The stance of this visual text is

evidenlty anti-Trump, the artists tries to expose

Trump’s faulty actions and characteristics. Trump is one of the most talked about topics on the
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news and media outlets. He has been a trending topic ever since his candidacy started and has

made his outrageous remarks and speeches ever since then. Any type of press is good press and

even this drawing, although it may not work in his favor, is a form of publicity since it is

featured in Rolling Stone magazine.

The artist appeals to timeliness by addressing a topic

that is relevant and current. Trump is the current

president of the United States and he is one of the

most talked about topics on news and media outlets.

The most recent coverage on Trump consists of the

infamous border wall, government shutdowns, his

involvement with other countries such as Russia,

Mexico, Puerto Rico, and his fast-food dinner that he

hosted at the White House for the Clemson Tigers.

No matter how serious the topic is he always seems

to spark controversy. As mentioned before, the artist

drew Trump wearing a restraining jacket but one of his hands managed to be left out of the

jacket. In his hand he is holding a phone, the first thing that pops to mind are his notorious

twitter moments and how uncensored they tend to be. It is a representation of the lack of

supervision and control from government administration, whether it is intentionally or

unintentionally. Any “big figure” usually has a publicist that looks over anything that will be

released to the public. It would be most suitable for the president to have a publicist or anything
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along those realms to review the sensitivity of their publications. After all, their communication

to the world is a big part of their role as president.

The drawing’s appeal to logic or reasoning would be the writing inside The Great Seal of

the United States. The word “me” is written all around the seal and is an emphasis on how

narcissistic Trump’s actions can be. A President should base any presidential decisions around

what is best for the country and not what is best for themselves. Most of Trump’s decisions for

our country seem to be self-centered and arrogant. All of the issues he’s prioritized for our

country have been issues that concern his life, tax cuts, government shutdown because of

budgeting issues, etc… Another detail to take into consideration are the words that are written on

a banner on top of the eagle. The banner says “cave insanus”, the word “insanus” is Latin for

insane or mad. These words would describe his mentality and reasoning behind his actions. Most

of his speeches and remarks to the public are not the most thought out ideas.

The drawing demonstrates an appeal to emotion by using a humorous approach. The

drawing mocks some of Trump’s actions and characteristics while addressing his misconduct.

His skin is colored extremely orange which is the artist’s way of mocking his fake tan. The artist

also exaggerates the detail in his hair making it obvious that he is wearing a toupee, again

emphasizing his non-authentic image. Trump's mouth is wide open which portrays him as an

obnoxious “loud-mouth”. The overall message evokes a negative emotion, whether it is a feeling

of hate towards Trump or a feeling a hate towards the way Trump is portrayed in the drawing.

The people that oppose Trump will find enjoyment from seeing him be exposed. These people

will support the painting and bring awareness to the message behind it. The people that support

Trump will be offended by this drawing for painting him as a “monster.” These people will try to
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discredit the drawing and try to negate the message behind it.

The appeal to credibility is demonstrated by the drawing being featured in Rolling Stone

magazine. Not only is it in the magazine but it is on the front cover, which brings even more

attention to the piece. The Rolling Stone is trusted by many and it is one of the most recognized

magazines in the US. The artist Matt Taibbi, is an editor for Rolling Stone and won the National

Magazine Award for columns and commentary in 2008. He also is also the author of some of

New York Times bestsellers (Rolling Stone).  

Ultimately, what is at stake here is the peace of our country, especially because of sexism

and racism issues. "They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists." (Donald

Trump) is one of Trump’s sayings that has caused the most uproar among the people. Not only

was it extremely disrespectful and demeaning, but there is no factual support behind this quote.

How can Trump say such serious accusations about an entire ethnicity with little to no factual

evidence, and still get the support of millions. This toxic support only leads to hate and malicious

intentions towards minorities. During protests, there has been a multitude of them where we can

see the intense tension between MAGA supporters and anti-Trump protesters. Recently, a video

has gone viral of a Native elder being circled by teenage MAGA supporters. While the elder was

playing a ceremonial drum, one of the teenage boys stood face to face to him with a malicious

stare and smile (Williams). Not only was it disturbing to watch but I could see the level of

egocentrism that these teenagers possessed.

This drawing exists to shed light towards the madness that has been Trump’s presidency.

The uproar and division that it had caused to America has shown people’s true colors and

intentions. This has been an issue that many people are passionate about, whether it's to support
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or oppose. Border laws, white supremacy, racism, budget costs, are some of the issues that have

been focused on since Trump became president. Pro-Trump members see him as a window to a

better country and anti-Trump members see him as something that is making our country fall

into shambles. It seems like now more than ever before, people are more involved in government

issues. Which is a good thing because we as citizens, have the right to speak up and stand for

what we believe no matter the issue.

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Works Cited

Matt Taibbi. (n.d.). Retrieved from ​https://www.rollingstone.com/author/matt-taibbi/

Phillips, A. (2017, June 16). 'They're rapists.' President Trump's campaign launch speech two

years later, annotated. Retrieved from

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/06/16/theyre-rapists-presidents-t

rump-campaign-launch-speech-two-years-later-annotated/?utm_term=.35a38859af97

Williams, D., & Grinberg, E. (2019, January 23). Teen in confrontation with Native American

elder says he was trying to defuse the situation. Retrieved from

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/19/us/teens-mock-native-elder-trnd/index.html