DR WHO, TRUMP AND THE KILL SHOT

​Did Donald Trump borrow ideas from the script of Dr Who? 

Geoffrey Stackhouse, Managing Director, Clarity Solutions

Just when I thought Donald Trump's Presidential campaign couldn't get anymore surreal, he plagiarised the script from the 2005 Dr Who Christmas special and is dominating the media with it. 

In the TV show, the Doctor claims he can end the Prime Minister's career with six words (don't you think she looks tired). But Trump is using just three (she lacks stamina).

Trump's replaced 'tired' with the more sexually charged 'stamina', but he's succeeded in capturing the media's attention and creating a conversation about whether or not Clinton has what it takes to be President. And it must be undermining her.

You can catch the full scene on the BBC's YouTube channel, or just look at the last 60 seconds or so for key message.

Dilbert creator, Scott Adams, has branded this technique a 'kill shot'. He analyses it in depth in his excellent blog, but it's not rocket science, it's just a particularly pernicious and highly distilled key message.

Trump's real art is using this simple key message at every opportunity - no explanation, no justification, just constant repetition. Despite his ramblings, he's a man with a message, as you can see in this compilation.

It's not a new technique, but it's winner in what passes for journalism in the social media age.

With any story media is searching for the defining hashtag, so make it easy for them by serving it up on a plate. Even if you have to coin your own expression.

When Alan Joyce announced Qantas's cracking profits last year, every other word he said seemed to be 'transformation'.

Try to find a news story without it used at least twice, often in the headline.

And when NAB's payments gateway, Transact, was malfunctioning it was famously placed into 'hypercare' - a term picked up by every media outlet and one which dominated how the issue was covered.