Donald Trump is deeply upset that the cover of the latest issue of Time magazine that featured him reflected his approval rating, not his mirror

It is almost Shakespearean: the mighty king undone, not by his enemies, but by a rogue camera angle. Mane man Donald Trump was upset with his hair as seen on the latest cover of Time. He took to Truth Social to complain: “They ‘disappeared’ my hair, and then had something floating on top of my head that looked like a floating crown, but an extremely small one.” The magazine lauded the Middle East peace plan with a cover blurb, “His Triumph”, but Mr Trump was not impressed, calling the photograph used “the Worst of All Time”. Never mind if, for most, Time matters not. But in an age of hyper-visual media, a dazzling shot clearly carries more weight than accomplishments.

Still appalled, Mr Trump continued to describe the lack of camera vantage as “underneath angles” that he “never like[s]”. It is a peculiar turn of phrase, as if he had to think of something at the last minute because he has never heard of the commonly used “low angles” or “shot from bottom up”. “Underneath angles” sounds, to us, like something interred. It has a certain sinister and buried vibe: The burial ground gave up a hand that clawed its way up through six feet of dirt, not for revenge, but for the sacred, undead mission of sabotaging how his hair would look on a magazine cover. It can’t get lower than that.

In an age of hyper-visual media, a dazzling shot clearly carries more weight than accomplishments

It looks like vanity trumped the value he got from the Time editorial. Image, as it turned out, eclipsed impact. For someone who’s long branded himself as a master of media, it’s not surprising that he’d fixate on how he’s visually portrayed, even when the coverage is favorable. It’s as if the photo became more important than the praise, which is, ironically, what he craves too. In many ways, this is how he approaches diplomacy: the imbalance of promotional energy far overshadows policy depth in his public messaging, such as the unveiling of the Middle East peace plan with dramatic flair alongside Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House. It’s a classic Trump manoeuvre: lead with spectacle, let the substance trail behind.

Donald Trump once again illustrated that, when it comes to what is appealing, it is all surface. The Time editorial actually put him in good light, but he chose to concentrate on the cover! This focus on the visual and aesthetic, rather than the substance of a laudatory political piece, is a classic example of his priorities and preoccupation with self-image. It explains why he loves bathing in adoration and desires his derrière to be kissed, as he once said. His image-by-vanity is consistent with his diplomacy-by-drama. It is clear that the aesthetics of a magazine cover can eclipse the actual policy or achievement. The fusion of self-image and spectacle is not just about being seen doing something important. More than that, it’s about being seen looking important while doing it.

Photo of magazine: time/Instagram. Illustration: Just so