The Interview Rhetorical Analysis

The recent political climate in Canada has been one characterized by its need for change. With the ever-increasing frustration revolving around the Conservative regime, many Canadians were ready to see an upheaval of the previous administration. To acknowledge, and hopefully reverse this change in climate, the Conservatives developed several attack ads aimed at demeaning public opinion of their opponents. One ad in particular, The Interview, was an effective means for undercutting the validity of Liberal leader Justin Trudeau. The ad utilizes framing as a technique to create negative associations about Trudeau through constant repetition of his inadequacies and loaded language. More specifically, the politically biased technique attempts to

establish Trudeau as a meager contender lacking the experience and maturity required for a fully qualified competitor. The associations developed throughout the brief commercial plant seeds of doubt as viewers are forced to re-evaluate if Trudeau truly is “just not ready”.
The campaign ad opens with four interviewers examining the different qualifications of potential candidates. Setting the stage in this particular format promotes the belief that prime ministers are being held and judged at a higher standard. In interview scenarios, an individual’s qualities are more intensively critiqued, as the employee is expected to represent the entire company through their actions. In a similar vein, the prime minister becomes a representative of the entire country, and their actions and qualities become exemplars for the entire nation to follow. The image of Trudeau that the Conservatives devise in their message, is a character that is incapable of making effective decisions, let alone taking on the role of representing a country. They address his lack of experience through several references, and use it as a means for creating trepidation in the minds of voters. In addition to the effect created by the specific format, the Conservative target population is addressed through the selectivity of the actors. Each interviewer represents a specific demographic within Canada, as the Conservatives attempt to demonstrate the universal applicability of their message. The older gentlemen, appeals to the the senior citizens, the South Asian man relates to the minorities, the professionally styled woman addresses the working class, and finally the cardigan-clad woman acts as the representative for the family orientated individuals. Each actor stakes a claim on an issue specific to their individual subsection (for example the cardigan-clad woman expresses her concerns about income splitting for families), and provide a voice that express concerns specific to their representative niche.
As the commercial progresses, several key remarks are made that highlight the overarching theme the Conservatives attempt to achieve. Following the first glance at his resume, the actors immediately go about undermining the experience of Trudeau. One actor makes a remark about the fact that “he’s included his picture”. This assertion emphasizes the superficial associations the Conservatives hope to create about Trudeau. There is large intent for the Conservatives to persuade their viewers that besides the “pretty boy” demeanor that Trudeau possesses, he lacks the depth and maturity required for a future leader. Support for this idea is stressed with several cutbacks to just the picture, rather than the policies or goals addressed in the other parts of the resume. The use of this repetitious tactic bolsters the one-dimensional character the Conservatives hope to mold of Trudeau in the eyes of their viewers. This theme is reiterated in the final segments of the ad where one of the actors comments on his “nice hair”. In their mention of this, the Conservatives reinforce the conclusion that while Trudeau has his looks, and “nice hair”, the extent of his good qualities end there. The Conservatives argue his “shiny” exterior cannot make up for his lack of a substantial interior (i.e. realistic policies and attainable goals).
In addition to fabricating his shallow demeanor, the Conservatives also go about undercutting several of Trudeau’s policies to expose his inexperience.

The middle excerpt of the commercial attempts to depreciate and minimize several of Trudeau’s platform ideas. Careful consideration was taken into which policies would be critiqued in this section, and ideas that would be especially disparaging to loyal Conservative supporters were included. The actors first attack Trudeau’s fiscal policies, exclaiming their disbelief at the lack of substance it possesses. In addressing one of his former quotes, “budgets balance themselves”, the conservatives build a case that, when taken out of context (which was done in the circumstance of this commercial), would be of concern to many voters. The conservatives attempt to frame a picture of Trudeau as a prime minister who would hope to achieve change by doing absolutely nothing. Upon further research, it is revealed that the quote comes from a larger context where Trudeau explains how as your economy grows, your revenue also increases which balances the income against the expenses. Taken in context, Trudeau wasn’t explicitly stating that budgets balance themselves, but rather implying that with increased revenue, a given budget would shift into a balanced position. Because the central focus of an attack ad is to paint the opponent as an incompetent competitor, words are often twisted and manipulated to vilify the individual in the eyes of the population. This concept is furthered when one actor exclaims how Trudeau’s only policy to keep Canada safe is to “send winter jackets to Syria”. The purposeful exclusion of any of Trudeau’s other policies severely limits the scope on his broader ideas. A similar technique is used when the commercial only gives acknowledgement to Trudeau’s policy of “legalizing marijuana”. The selective omission of many of his other policies paints an oversimplified version of Trudeau. While these are not his

only plans for progress, the ad does a purposeful job of only mentioning policies that come across as minimal and trivial. The actions appear to be shortsighted and the implication that these policies are representations for the greater picture of Trudeau do little to ease the opinion of vulnerable voters.
The commercial continues to secure the association that Trudeau doesn’t know what he’s doing using both explicit mentions of his immaturity (“he has some growing up to do”) and implicit means. Paralleling Trudeau to a “celebrity” figure who “says things before thinking them through” both highlights and secures the naivety he has regarding the new position. Celebrities are often credited for the grandiose claims they make without considering the consequences of what is being said. Equating him to such figures implies Trudeau lacks the foresight, due to his inexperience, to make qualified claims for decisions about the future for Canada. Coupled with this concept is the final jab delivered in the closing seconds of the ad. One actor remarks that the position of prime minister “is not an entry level job”. Jobs of those status require basic pre-requisites and lack the nuances and metal capacities involved with jobs of a higher esteem. This suggestion once again cripples the character of Trudeau as his abilities to lead are once again undermined.
The Conservatives are well-known for consistently taking advantage of this framing technique to devalue their opponents in various elections. Establishing pretenses that weaken the character of the opponents, is an effective means for creating doubt in the minds of the voters. Throughout the length of the commercial several concerns are voiced about Trudeau revolving around his inexperience, lack of substance, and immaturity. The rhetorical strategies used in this context build associations around Trudeau that effectively mismanage his image.