Co-Production and Populism

Abstract

Production fulfils the making of a thing by bringing it to public scrutiny. Production is therefore the cutting edge of rhetorical performance in law, politics, media, and all aspects of civic and social life. Its impact lies largely in the fact that the publicor 'publics'are naturally most persuaded towards the positive reception of a thing where they perceive that they've had a hand in the co-Production of the thing. The appeal to 'making with' has been a technique favoured by orators throughout the history of political rhetoric. President John F. Kennedy employed it in his Inaugural Address on 20 January 1961, when he called on 'both sides' to 'join in creating a new endeavor, not a new balance of power, but a new world of law, where the strong are just and the weak secure and the peace preserved'. With the very different motivation of seeking to divide one section of humanity from the rest, Donald Trump also appealed to collaborative construction when he famously said: 'we have to build a wall, folks. We have to build a wall.' 1 Perhaps he borrowed the technique from his background in business and sales, for the appeal to 'making with' is also pervasive in modern marketing practices. Thus, in 2008, word-of-mouth or 'viral' marketing was called 'the defining marketing trend of the decade'. 2 Analysing that trend, Jim Nail, chief strategy and marketing officer at media company Cymfony, emphasizes the public's co-Productive influence on demand for the things that suppliers make: 'To succeed in word-of-mouth marketing, you need to find that segment of real ardent fans and create special programs and tools that will empower them to share that enthusiasm.' 3 The tactic of appealing to and empowering 'that segment of real ardent fans' sounds like something straight out of the Donald Trump playbook.