The mainstream press frequently characterized the election of President Barack Obama, the first African American US President, as the realization of Martin Luther King's dream, thus crafting a postracial narrative of national transcendence. I argue that this routine characterization of Obama's election functions as a site for the production of…

While Muhammad Ali has been the subject of countless articles and books written by sports historians and journalists, rhetorical scholars have largely ignored him. This oversight is surprising given both the tradition of social movement scholarship within rhetorical studies and Ali's influential eloquence as a world renowned celebrity espousing…

Examines President Clinton's address to 5,000 African Americans at the site of Martin Luther King's last speech in Memphis. Develops a critical orientation revolving around the concepts of tradition, invention, and authority to explore Clinton's performance. Shows how he interanimated the black church and liberal traditions in American politics.…

Examines the rhetorical function of the modern American jeremiad as a means to restore social harmony in a time of crisis. Analyzes Robert F. Kennedy's response to the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Reveals the strengths and limitations of the jeremiad as a response to social crisis. (SR)

Scholars have celebrated the spoken word in King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail," but they have overlooked the significance of the Letter's writing. In this essay I closely read King's act of writing the Letter, along with the figures of speech he employs in it, and I show how both--by enacting the mass media's ability to cross contexts--are…