Hearts & Minds: National emergencies and the war of words – how the rhetoric of leadership is shifting

America is combating a ‘national emergency’; Britain must prepare for ‘fighting a war’. These are not the words of excitable commentators, not invented by a breathless media. They are used by their two leaders to persuade the public that what they are doing make sense.

Donald Trump explains his tariffs onslaught that way. It’s how Sir Keir Starmer chooses to justify his defence shopping list. Both policies have repercussions, neither  sits comfortably with the electorate. Customs charges will spark economic pain, businesses and consumers will suffer. The pain is necessary, declares the president. It won’t last; it will pave the way for a stronger US. Likewise, against a backdrop of spending cuts, tax rises and reductions in international aid, the prime minister wants to add submarines and warships, grow nuclear weapons and boost the armed forces.

In the past, their rhetoric might have been softer. The US would have been facing a trade imbalance; the UK would be seeking a military deterrent. Is America genuinely facing a national emergency? Is Britain really about to go to war? It must be the case that the analysis they are seeing is highlighting the concern and recommending a solution. But is something else occurring, which is that, in order to connect with a younger demographic, they feel obliged to crank up the volume?

Millennials account for almost 25 per cent of the world’s population. They are the richest, most educated cohort ever and increasingly the most influential. Gen Zs are just behind, beginning their careers. Both groups are technologically savvy, digital communication is second nature, especially the Gen Zs. They have experienced their own watersheds – for Millennials it was 9/11; Gen Zs, the pandemic.

Their attention spans are shorter. They are listeners and viewers, from podcasts and YouTube, more than readers. For something political and financial to have cut through, intended to make them act in a certain way, it should have meaning and validation. Content has to be shorter and contain cause. They must be able to grasp immediately it is important and why.

National emergencies and fighting wars are phrases they have heard their parents and grandparents use in relation to historic events. They cannot relate to them directly but they know it matters. Quite likely they were spoken of in hushed tones, often accompanied by a shudder.

Comms is shifting. What might have worked previously no longer has the same impact.

Chris Blackhurst is one of the UK’s foremost business journalists. He was previously Editor of The Independent and City Editor of the Evening Standard.