Paul Chilton
@paulchilton.bsky.social
European. Internationalist. Humanist. Retired Prof of linguistics, affiliated to Oxford, Warwick, Lancaster. Can’t stop thinking, reading, writing.
My latest book is a political one: “Brexitspeak: Demagoguery and the Decline of Democracy”.
My latest book is a political one: “Brexitspeak: Demagoguery and the Decline of Democracy”.
The Trump regime’s outages are coming thick and fast. We get increasingly Orwellian justifications from Trump’s department of Homeland Propaganda. What’s really going on?
January 11, 2026 at 2:52 PM
The Trump regime’s outages are coming thick and fast. We get increasingly Orwellian justifications from Trump’s department of Homeland Propaganda. What’s really going on?
Is it a coincidence? Venezuela attacked, Greenland and Europe threatened, then ICE killing an observer of a protest in Minneapolis. An external enemy one day, an enemy within the next. Misrepresentations and lies in both cases. Is this not typical of dictatorial regimes? We must all resist!
January 8, 2026 at 3:24 PM
Is it a coincidence? Venezuela attacked, Greenland and Europe threatened, then ICE killing an observer of a protest in Minneapolis. An external enemy one day, an enemy within the next. Misrepresentations and lies in both cases. Is this not typical of dictatorial regimes? We must all resist!
Reposted by Paul Chilton
White House: “The president and his team are discussing a range of options…utilising the U.S. military is always an option” Stephen Miller:“Nobody is going to fight the United States militarily over Greenland.” Speech acts in context: threat. Implicature: NATO and Europe won’t react. But we must!
January 8, 2026 at 1:12 PM
White House: “The president and his team are discussing a range of options…utilising the U.S. military is always an option” Stephen Miller:“Nobody is going to fight the United States militarily over Greenland.” Speech acts in context: threat. Implicature: NATO and Europe won’t react. But we must!
White House: “The president and his team are discussing a range of options…utilising the U.S. military is always an option” Stephen Miller:“Nobody is going to fight the United States militarily over Greenland.” Speech acts in context: threat. Implicature: NATO and Europe won’t react. But we must!
January 8, 2026 at 1:12 PM
White House: “The president and his team are discussing a range of options…utilising the U.S. military is always an option” Stephen Miller:“Nobody is going to fight the United States militarily over Greenland.” Speech acts in context: threat. Implicature: NATO and Europe won’t react. But we must!
An extraordinary oratorical operation
substack.com/@paulchilton...
substack.com/@paulchilton...
An extraordinary oratorical operation
Trump’s statement on Venezuela
substack.com
January 7, 2026 at 9:51 PM
An extraordinary oratorical operation
substack.com/@paulchilton...
substack.com/@paulchilton...
Experts may be right in saying that Trump will not in fact use military force against Greenland. But the force of words has already done its work. The threat of doing so has been implied in speeches, interviews and texts. If you’re on the receiving end, you can’t ignore the possibility.
January 7, 2026 at 8:34 PM
Experts may be right in saying that Trump will not in fact use military force against Greenland. But the force of words has already done its work. The threat of doing so has been implied in speeches, interviews and texts. If you’re on the receiving end, you can’t ignore the possibility.
“Nobody’s going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland”, says Stephen Miller. That’s not just a statement but a boast and a warning. “Don’t you dare, you’ve just seen what we can do! We’ll take what we want!”
January 6, 2026 at 9:22 PM
“Nobody’s going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland”, says Stephen Miller. That’s not just a statement but a boast and a warning. “Don’t you dare, you’ve just seen what we can do! We’ll take what we want!”
Reposted by Paul Chilton
Was, wenn genau das durch Trump verursacht werden soll, damit sein Chef im Kreml gleich zwei große Probleme auf einmal loswird?
Währenddessen können sich Trump und seine Kumpane die Taschen vollstopfen.
bsky.app/profile/psyc...
Währenddessen können sich Trump und seine Kumpane die Taschen vollstopfen.
bsky.app/profile/psyc...
Wohin es geht steht fest. Die Frage ist nur, ob es die NATO zerreißt, wenn ein NATO-Land ein anderes angreift und wie lange es die EU noch geben wird, sollten sich EU-Staaten weigern, ihrer militärischen Beistandspflicht nachzukommen.
Trump-Berater: Niemand wird mit USA um Grönland kämpfen
Stephen Miller, einer der wichtigsten Berater von US-Präsident Donald Trump, ist überzeugt, dass es keinen militärischen Widerstand von europäischer Seite gegen eine Annexion Grönlands durch die USA g...
orf.at
January 6, 2026 at 10:02 AM
Was, wenn genau das durch Trump verursacht werden soll, damit sein Chef im Kreml gleich zwei große Probleme auf einmal loswird?
Währenddessen können sich Trump und seine Kumpane die Taschen vollstopfen.
bsky.app/profile/psyc...
Währenddessen können sich Trump und seine Kumpane die Taschen vollstopfen.
bsky.app/profile/psyc...
The Logic of Destruction
open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p...
I have posted a piece on Substack that includes a similar argument about Trump’s strategy of the external enemy and the enemy within. Based on a linguistic analysis of his recent speech about his attack on Venezuela.
open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p...
I have posted a piece on Substack that includes a similar argument about Trump’s strategy of the external enemy and the enemy within. Based on a linguistic analysis of his recent speech about his attack on Venezuela.
The Logic of Destruction
And how to resist it
open.substack.com
January 5, 2026 at 2:56 PM
The Logic of Destruction
open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p...
I have posted a piece on Substack that includes a similar argument about Trump’s strategy of the external enemy and the enemy within. Based on a linguistic analysis of his recent speech about his attack on Venezuela.
open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p...
I have posted a piece on Substack that includes a similar argument about Trump’s strategy of the external enemy and the enemy within. Based on a linguistic analysis of his recent speech about his attack on Venezuela.
@charlotteent.bsky.social This research sounds extremely interesting. Do you include cognitive rigidity? I think your work be interesting also to political psychologists.
January 5, 2026 at 2:39 PM
@charlotteent.bsky.social This research sounds extremely interesting. Do you include cognitive rigidity? I think your work be interesting also to political psychologists.
…The board’s open letter stated that review criteria were improperly influenced by applicants’ positions on topics such as climate change, race, and gender.” [Wikipedia]
December 28, 2025 at 1:45 PM
…The board’s open letter stated that review criteria were improperly influenced by applicants’ positions on topics such as climate change, race, and gender.” [Wikipedia]
…The board, which provides oversight for the international Fulbright exchange program, alleged that political appointees at the U.S. Department of State blocked or delayed awards for the 2025–26 academic year and subjected more than 1,200 foreign finalists to unauthorized ideological screening.
December 28, 2025 at 1:42 PM
…The board, which provides oversight for the international Fulbright exchange program, alleged that political appointees at the U.S. Department of State blocked or delayed awards for the 2025–26 academic year and subjected more than 1,200 foreign finalists to unauthorized ideological screening.
The board, which provides oversight for the international Fulbright exchange program, alleged that political appointees at the U.S. Department of State blocked or delayed awards for the 2025–26 academic year and subjected more than 1,20…
December 28, 2025 at 1:34 PM
The board, which provides oversight for the international Fulbright exchange program, alleged that political appointees at the U.S. Department of State blocked or delayed awards for the 2025–26 academic year and subjected more than 1,20…
On June 11, 2025, eleven of the twelve members of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board resigned in protest, citing what they described as "unlawful" political interference by the Trump administration…
December 28, 2025 at 1:33 PM
On June 11, 2025, eleven of the twelve members of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board resigned in protest, citing what they described as "unlawful" political interference by the Trump administration…
If any academic is considering applying for a grant, be aware: “In February 2025, the Trump administration initiated a funding freeze on State Department programs, including the Fulbright Program… The suspension impacted over 19,000 participants…” [Wikipedia].
December 28, 2025 at 1:30 PM
If any academic is considering applying for a grant, be aware: “In February 2025, the Trump administration initiated a funding freeze on State Department programs, including the Fulbright Program… The suspension impacted over 19,000 participants…” [Wikipedia].
Linguists… (3) more on lexis. Cognitive rigidity in ideological
extremism is marked by overgeneralisation (“always”, “never”…) and emotive intensification (“amazing”, “great big”). It’s Trumpspeak.
extremism is marked by overgeneralisation (“always”, “never”…) and emotive intensification (“amazing”, “great big”). It’s Trumpspeak.
December 23, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Linguists… (3) more on lexis. Cognitive rigidity in ideological
extremism is marked by overgeneralisation (“always”, “never”…) and emotive intensification (“amazing”, “great big”). It’s Trumpspeak.
extremism is marked by overgeneralisation (“always”, “never”…) and emotive intensification (“amazing”, “great big”). It’s Trumpspeak.
Of course, “civilisational erasure” is also code for the migration into Europe, and for MAGA’s “Great replacement” conspiracy theory.
December 23, 2025 at 11:31 AM
Of course, “civilisational erasure” is also code for the migration into Europe, and for MAGA’s “Great replacement” conspiracy theory.
Linguists…(2) Syntax
It’s well known Trump uses simple sentences. It’s a marker of all populism, authoritarianism and potentially dictatorial rule, and other linguists may have already covered this. We need to track it across languages, and between far-right actors.and political cultures.
It’s well known Trump uses simple sentences. It’s a marker of all populism, authoritarianism and potentially dictatorial rule, and other linguists may have already covered this. We need to track it across languages, and between far-right actors.and political cultures.
December 20, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Linguists…(2) Syntax
It’s well known Trump uses simple sentences. It’s a marker of all populism, authoritarianism and potentially dictatorial rule, and other linguists may have already covered this. We need to track it across languages, and between far-right actors.and political cultures.
It’s well known Trump uses simple sentences. It’s a marker of all populism, authoritarianism and potentially dictatorial rule, and other linguists may have already covered this. We need to track it across languages, and between far-right actors.and political cultures.
… le trumpisme est une langue dépouillée et décousue, qui trouve son efficacité dans la répétition. L’un des mots favoris du président américain est hoax ou canular. L’ingérence russe à son profit, dans la campagne présidentielle de 2016 ? « Hoax. »Ses inculpations judiciaires en 2023 ? « Hoax. »
December 19, 2025 at 10:36 AM
… le trumpisme est une langue dépouillée et décousue, qui trouve son efficacité dans la répétition. L’un des mots favoris du président américain est hoax ou canular. L’ingérence russe à son profit, dans la campagne présidentielle de 2016 ? « Hoax. »Ses inculpations judiciaires en 2023 ? « Hoax. »
Trump’s political dialect cries out for expert linguistic analysis. For a start, there is an ideological language policy. (1) The Trump regime has proscribed hundreds of words, including: racist, climate crisis, diversity…
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Linguists must keep track of these.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Linguists must keep track of these.
These Words Are Disappearing in the New Trump Administration
Federal agencies have issued guidance to employees on hundreds of terms to limit or avoid using. An analysis of government websites shows many of the same words being removed.
www.nytimes.com
December 19, 2025 at 10:08 AM
Trump’s political dialect cries out for expert linguistic analysis. For a start, there is an ideological language policy. (1) The Trump regime has proscribed hundreds of words, including: racist, climate crisis, diversity…
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Linguists must keep track of these.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Linguists must keep track of these.
Sorry to be gloomy at Xmas, but Trumpspeak and MAGAspeak continue to develop… they constitute a quasi-dialect. Analysing it should give us linguists plenty to do, whatever your specialism. If you fear the rise of fascism, it’s kind of a democratic duty, the least we can do is as linguists.
specialism.you
December 18, 2025 at 12:58 PM
Sorry to be gloomy at Xmas, but Trumpspeak and MAGAspeak continue to develop… they constitute a quasi-dialect. Analysing it should give us linguists plenty to do, whatever your specialism. If you fear the rise of fascism, it’s kind of a democratic duty, the least we can do is as linguists.
The BBC messed up by juxtaposing two extracts from different parts of Trump’s Capitol riot speech. But the fact is he did say “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol” and “we fight”. And used the word “fight” multiple times throughout. Mere metaphor? That depends what the rioters thought it meant.
December 16, 2025 at 11:17 PM
The BBC messed up by juxtaposing two extracts from different parts of Trump’s Capitol riot speech. But the fact is he did say “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol” and “we fight”. And used the word “fight” multiple times throughout. Mere metaphor? That depends what the rioters thought it meant.