PROVOCATION AS A DISRUPTIVE BRANDING STRATEGY:

Abstract

This dissertation examines the strategic evolution of political marketing within the attention economy, specifically focusing on the transition from Barack Obama¿s attraction-based "Lovemark" model to Donald Trump¿s disruptive "Challenger Brand" approach. Through a comparative analysis of engagement metrics on platform X, the study demonstrates how provocation and emotional activation serve as high-efficiency drivers for algorithmic reach and visibility. Ultimately, it validates the "friction paradigm," where conflict is leveraged as a strategic asset to achieve cognitive dominance in saturated digital environments.