Max Whisnant ’21
Peace and Conflict Pathway
An aspiring politician, Max joined the Peace and Conflict Pathway to better understand political conflicts and learn to develop solutions. A government and English double major, he interned for U.S. Representative Joe Kennedy’s U.S. Senate campaign in Massachusetts and developed an interest in political rhetoric. And in Assistant Professor of Government Mara Suttmann-Lea’s “Parties, Campaigns, and Elections” course, Max learned about effective campaign messaging. “Unsurprisingly, comparative messaging helped a candidate best because this style does not directly attack an opponent, but instead gives voters an alternative vision without the degradation of another candidate,” he said. Max is now writing an honors thesis on presidential rhetoric during catastrophic times. After graduation, he is looking forward to starting his career in politics, either as a candidate himself or working on campaigns. “I am excited to dive into policy and try to help solve some of our problems,” he said.