Anne-Marie Houde

Ketchup Is the Whitest Sauce: Memes as Silly/Serious Bordered Spaces in International Relations Abstract. This paper draws on previous scholarship on humor, memes, and seriousness in International Relations to produce a novel means for understanding o

Do you like ketchup? Not only are you wrong, but you may be a fascist. Not really, but in my 🍅New Publication🍅 "Ketchup Is the Whitest Sauce", in International Political Sociology, I argue that memes about ketchup showcase Neo-Nazi solidarity.
academic.oup.com/ips/article/...

1/3. We're thrilled to announce the publication of: “The Declining Kingdom? Emotional Ascription, Emotional Expectations, and Humour in the International Framing of the UK in Crisis” by Anne-Marie Houde
@annemhoude.bsky.social
@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
@sagepub.com

Thanks @ericvanr.bsky.social !

Massive thank you to the special issue's editors, the Politics team, and the reviewers for making the publication process so smooth. A special thank you also to @ngellwitzki.bsky.social and @benrosher.bsky.social for their feedback on an earlier draft of the paper.

These negative framings challenge the narrative of Global Britain, undermining national image, soft power, and status aspirations. However, the article also finds that such critiques are primarily directed at British politicians rather than the population or culture.

It introduces the concepts of emotional ascription and emotional expectations, and incorporates humour into the analysis. Drawing on international media, the article identifies two dominant portrayals: the UK as a pitied, “broken” country, and as a mocked “laughing stock.”

Over the last few years, the UK has faced some crises, including Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and a deepening cost-of-living crisis. This article examines how foreign media have portrayed the UK in relation to these events, with a focus on the politics of emotions.

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journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

My latest article, "The Declining Kingdom? Emotional Ascription, Emotional Expectations, and Humour in the International Framing of the UK in Crisis”, is now available in @politicsjournal.bsky.social as part of a special issue on Global Britain. 🇬🇧

Massive thank you to the special issue's editors, the Politics team, and the reviewers for making the publication process so smooth. A special thank you also to @ngellwitzki.bsky.social and @benrosher.bsky.social for their feedback on an earlier draft of the paper.

These negative framings challenge the narrative of Global Britain, undermining national image, soft power, and status aspirations. However, the article also finds that such critiques are primarily directed at British politicians rather than the population or culture.

It introduces the concepts of emotional ascription and emotional expectations, and incorporates humour into the analysis. Drawing on international media, the article identifies two dominant portrayals: the UK as a pitied, “broken” country, and as a mocked “laughing stock.”

Over the last few years, the UK has faced some crises, including Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and a deepening cost-of-living crisis. This article examines how foreign media have portrayed the UK in relation to these events, with a focus on the politics of emotions.

Find mine and @ngellwitzki.bsky.social’s new article on EU-UK relations and the emotional (de)politicisation of the Covid-19 vaccine in International Affairs' new issue 📄

It’s held in Newcastle, UK 😊

Last day to send your paper proposal to our “Global Politics of Hope” workshop! @indrajitroy.bsky.social @mybisa.bsky.social @isanet.bsky.social

You’re a star ⭐️

Delighted to see this out! It was a real pleasure to co-author this piece with the brilliant @annemhoude.bsky.social on the emotional (de)politicisation of the ‘Oxford’ vaccine and its significance for EU–UK relations. It’s open access - do have a look!

🔗: academic.oup.com/ia/advance-a...

🧵👇

Thank you to the editors and reviewers, and to @louis-stockwell.bsky.social for his feedback on an early draft of the article!

Our article shows how emotions drive (de)politicisation, shaping what is contested—and what is not.

It contributes to debates on affect in IR, EU politicisation, and Brexit’s ongoing emotional resonance.

Domestically, emotional appeals depoliticised the government’s vaccine response.

Internationally, those same emotions politicised EU–UK relations.

This dual process reveals the emotional architecture of post-Brexit legitimacy.

We call this Gefühlspolitik: policymaking through emotion.

The British public was entitled to feel proud.
The EU was obligated to feel ashamed.

These emotional claims shaped how blame and credit were distributed.

Meanwhile, EU concerns over safety were framed in British discourse as retribution, incompetence, or even spite.

A vaccine war narrative emerged, casting Britain as heroic underdog.

We unpack how emotions shaped the politics of the COVID-19 vaccine post-Brexit. We show that the UK media and government framed the 'Oxford' vaccine as proof that Brexit was right; a moment of national pride and vindication.

🚨New Publication🚨I'm thrilled to share my latest article on the emotional (de)politicisation of the ‘Oxford’ COVID-19 vaccine and its impact on EU-UK relations, now available on @iajournal.bsky.social's website. 🇬🇧🇪🇺

As always, it has been a joy to work with @ngellwitzki.bsky.social on this project.

Title and abstract of the forthcoming article on the European Common Assembly, later European Parliament of the Six, women and their career. ‘In their own voice: the early women of European integration (1950s-1960s) between political advocacy and European careers’, soon out in European Politics and Society.

📬 Forthcoming on European Politics and Society,the 2nd article on my @esrciaasurrey.bsky.social project on the early women of European integration,thanks to the writing time at ULB with @nathaliebrack.bsky.social more on this at the nxt @uaces.bsky.social annual general conf @cbesurrey.bsky.social

Thank you☺️

Honoured to be this year’s winner of the @epir-bisa.bsky.social @mybisa.bsky.social best thesis prize, and to share this recognition with the amazing @ubaspehlivan.bsky.social ⭐️ Thank you to the judges!

Congratulations Karl!

Congratulations! Great article, well deserved

Congrats Fran!!