Risk Communication in Inauguration Speeches of the Presidents of the Republic of Lithuania

Field of political communication is a wide-ranging and intriguing: it is not only the question discussed in public and media discourses, in which news of political life are analysed and there are highlighted the problems of the political situation, and political action models; various possible approaches to participants and processes of political communication are discussed in scientific discourse, by analyzing election communication, exploring the formation of images and patterns and agendas of public opinion. Political communication in the field of presidential inaugural speeches is rarely investigated. Scholars stress that the President’s inaugural speech is a presentation of the future leader of the country, in which priorities of presidential activities, identified objectives and values are presented. Presidential inaugural speeches delivered by the president are presentation of the visions of the future of the state. Presidents also discuss the country life, identify the sources of risk and potential consequences of the threats. T his article aims to analyze communicated risks in the presidential inaugural speeches. The article presents the analysis of definition of presidential inaugural rhetoric and its specificity, discuss samples of Lithuanian presidents’ inaugural speeches, demonstrating and showing the risks to the country, its people, highlighting the risks of emergence causes, sources and potential consequences