Adopting a new face – a mask – might be one of the conditions for a comeback to the political scene. A political face is not a synonym for identity because it is not shaped by the public, but it consists a sort of mask which is put on a politician by his/her image advisors and next presented to the public. This paper attempts to verify a thesis that a political face is not a synonym but an unstable element of a political image. The political image again is an equivalent for socio-political identity. Most definitions which appear in works on political communication treat the political image as a kind of Ego reflected in a way similar to the concept of Marzena Cichosz, who indicates, that the image consists of a set of features, which in the opinion of the public the subject possesses.

Celem artykułu jest analiza wykorzystania skandalizacji jako specyficznego sposobu kształtowania wizerunku oraz przyciągania uwagi widowni. W tym kontekście autor zdefiniował pojęcie skandalizacji oraz określił przesłanki uzasadniające wykorzystanie takich mechanizmów w polityce. Analizując kariery wybranych polskich polityków, scharakteryzował wizerunek skandalisty oraz określił rolę takich osób na scenie politycznej. Ponadto wyróżnił i opisał cztery rodzaje skandalizacji: dyskredytacyjną, prowokacyjną, bulwersującą, celebrycką. Odnosząc się do tej typologii, sprecyzował kilka ogólnych wyznaczników wykorzystania mechanizmów skandalizacji do autopromocji i kształtowania wizerunku.

Medialny obraz polityka to, w dobie dzisiejszych kampanii wyborczych, istotne zagadnienie warte dokładnej analizy. Prezentowane w mediach wizerunki polityczne są często przedstawiane w sposób stronniczy, nierzadko subiektywny, powodując tym samym przekłamanie rzeczywistości. W artykule dokonano analizy tekstów publicystycznych zamieszczonych w tygodniku opinii „Newsweek” w czasie trwania kampanii prezydenckiej w 2015 r. Celem badania było ukazanie prezentowanych medialnych obrazów polityków oraz wskazanie na ich charakter, przy założeniu stronniczości przekazu medialnego.

Political image is formed in the mass consciousness, and has the kind of a stereotype, emotionally colored image of a political leader. Political image has a purely integral essence and is derived from the psychological, physiological and intellectual characteristics of the leader, aimed at the object of image perception. The image of a political leader is the essence and objective unit of communicative interaction in the system «political leader – the masses». He feels the interaction of various factors, which can be conventionally referred to as communication filters. At the same time, the essence of an effective image-making process is to see and take into account these barriers in time and achieve the greatest perception of the leader’s image. The specificity of a political leader in society is that citizens usually form their ideas about politicians not as a result of direct contact with them, but on the basis of symbolic politician representation in the media. Ideology and programs as the subject basis of political communication between leaders and the masses are increasingly being replaced by the image of a politician being created and promulgated in the media. The presence of a political leader in the media occurs as a necessary condition for his positioning in the political space. The formation of the leader political image during the war helps not only to achieve the political goals of the politician himself, but also affects the course of hostilities and the availability of world community support. The article attempts to analyze the political image of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi during the Russian-Ukrainian war and his influence on the war course. The author’s attention is focused on determining the image micro roles of the President, analyzing the impact of his image and rhetoric on the support of the world community and the decisions of the authorities of different countries. The author also explores how Ukrainians’ support for their president has changed since the beginning of the war. The author determines from which elements the image of a modern politician is built. Existing and additional micro roles of Volodymyr Zelenskyi image have been studied. The micro role of the President of Ukraine image among Ukrainians and at the international level is indicated. A content analysis of the President’s speeches in the British Parliament and the US Congress was performed. The impact of these speeches on the assistance to the Ukrainian army is analyzed. An increase in the level of support for the president by Ukrainians themselves since the beginning of the war has been revealed. The change in the image of the President of Ukraine among the international community and the level of support are shown.

Shaping a candidate’s political image in the media o ver the years

Communication is an integral part of human life. It occurs simultaneously on many levels and in many different directions. With the development of new technologies and, consequently, with the development of new ways of reaching a mass audience, the media have taken over the main role in this process. Currently, apart from the information function, the media are also assigned other functions, including: educational, integration, entertainment, opinion-forming, communication, economic and intervention. Aware of this state of affairs, politicians try to respond in all possible ways to the needs visible among society, creating their profile as a kind of consumer product ready for sale. This process is increasingly supervised by a whole team of professionals who monitor the behavior of rival candidates and create a persona that will better and more accurately respond to emerging and dynamically changing social needs.