“Bunglers and Haters of Women” – Delegitimization Strategies of Political Opponents in Selected Video Ads of Poland’s Civic Platform. A Multimodal Analysis

This study investigates the delegitimization strategies employed by Civic‎ Platform, Poland’s largest liberal party, in its portrayal of political opponents ‎during the 2023 parliamentary campaign. By analyzing nine election ads, the‎ paper explores how the formation constructs its political opponents, employing ‎specific semiotic and multimodal strategies to delegitimize the then ruling ‎Law and Justice. The study integrates Bar-Tal’s model of delegitimization to‎ assess the party’s strategic messaging and examines the role of disparaging humor ‎in shaping political legitimacy. The findings reveal that Civic Platform’s‎ campaign frames Law and Justice politicians as incompetent caricatures or‎ lawbreakers harmful to Polish citizens. In particular, Jarosław Kaczyński, the ‎party’s leader, is depicted as inherently malevolent and driven by personal‎ vendettas. The analysis highlights a diverse range of semiotic choices used to ‎construct political adversaries and uncovers striking parallels between Polish ‎liberal discourse and far-right rhetoric, particularly in the use of racial stereotypes ‎against immigrants and in reliance on emotional arguments. These‎ insights emphasize the need for a broader approach to politically-oriented discourse‎ analysis that accounts for ideological overlaps and the strategic use of‎ humor in political communication.‎‎