The Reason Tweets are Not Enough

Effective communication from the President can make or break an Administration. Even if a President had great ideas, ones that would be unanimously favored, a poorly executed communications strategy would render him impotent. Multiple Presidents have been considered captains of change, whether good or bad, in the way they interact with the public. Similar to Presidents in the past, Donald Trump is using the current technology, in social media, to attempt to grasp the interest and support of the public. However, his administration assumes social media in enough communication, the public is consuming his information different than that of any President in the past, and as a result of this technological change he is not sufficiently transparent compared to past Presidents.

Franklin D. Roosevelt took a hold of the reeling nation with the introduction of his fireside chats. A way to reach the public over the radio quicker and more personably. John F. Kennedy extended upon that idea by doing televised news conferences that the entire country could view. These techniques, that may now seem ancient, were used in days that they were revolutionary, as Donald Trump’s tweeting is seen today. Nowadays, Presidents typically have around 15 formal news conferences a year, along with speeches, press releases, and other channels to the reach public (Cillizza 1). Whatever their method, their goal is to send their message to the public.

The difference between President Trump and his predecessors is that his predecessors did not largely rely on a single channel to inform the public. The Trump administration assumes almost complete convergence of the media, however, there are still plenty of people that do not follow along on Twitter, and therefore miss vital information from the President himself. It also is sporadic and comes across as unprofessional. According to CNN, as of February 2018, Donald Trump had held a total of one press conference (Cillizza 1). In his first year, Obama held 11 (Cillizza 1). His Press Secretary still holds regular press conferences but often refuses to answer questions and has even kicked reporters out of some conferences. The key to communicating, is both sending and receiving. Whether or not the Trump Administration’s sending of messages is effective, not having formal press conferences denys the chance for a reporter to send a…

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