Political discourse as a managerial discourse: Approaches to definition and interpretation

The article considers definitions and features of political discourse interpreted by the author as a managerial discourse. Based on the speech of the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in 2016, the author identifies attributes that constitute the political discourse, and provides quite an innovative interpretation of discourse as a social communication technology. The definition of the managerial discourse as a communicative technology leads to the interpretation of language as a code of interaction between society and the state; and the key feature of this communicative code is its ability to constitute social situations with a number of choices for all subjects of the system ‘the state - society’. At the same time, such a communication seamlessly combines common orientations and identity patterns. The author believes that one of the most important characteristics of the communicative situation reflected in the codes of the Russian President speech is its projection on the socially significant realities, such as the structural composition of power, the scope of power, political and economic situation, etc. The content of this political discourse is so well defined (economic issues) that its direct addressees are business communities and entrepreneurs taking part in the forum. However, the Russian President broadens the audience by some agentive nominations like “the heads of international organizations”, “leaders of the countries”, and “reputable politicians”, thus appealing to those who determine the situation in the global economy, and, hence, the common values of all countries of the world. The author concludes that the sociologically relevant typological characteristics of the political discourse are as follows: international community as a target audience, addressing global challenges, and attention to universal values.