Phrase-"thrown under the bus"

[Grant Barrett]

I did an entry for "throw (someone) under the bus" today (giving Sam
Clements credit for bringing it to light).

http://www.dtww.org/index.php/dictionary/throw_someone_under_the_bus/

Despite the Urban Dictionary entry (which, like all such dubious
etymologies, lacks details--call letters? station manager name?) I
was only able to take it back for certain to 1991, when it appeared
in a courtroom context. There is also a bracketed quote from 1984,
which, as in HDAS style, means that it's not certain to perfectly
epitomize the term being defined, from the rock-and-roll industry. It
has it only as "under the bus" not "throw under the bus" or "put
under the bus" (which is a less common variant). I think I let my
subscription to Rock's Back Pages expire, so perhaps someone else
will try to verify that something similar exists in that biz.

Grant Barrett
Double-Tongued Dictionary
http://www.doubletongued.org/

The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English (May 2006, McGraw-Hill)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071458042/


On Oct 1, 2006, at 22:08, Troy wrote:

> Although Urban Dictionary is far from reliable, the
> below suggested origin seems to bear what minor
> scrutiny I can give it for the moment as google web
> search comes back with a heavy sports emphasis.
>
> Origin: A Boston radio station manager coined the term
> circa 1987-88 when canceling a radio network's
> services on his music-oriented FM station, stating
> that he was going to put the network "under the bus."
> The term was picked up by staff members to describe
> conduct in which one person would try to gain an
> advantage in company politics by speaking ill of, or
> doing something to reflect disfavorably on, another.
> In this context, it generally meant something that was
> a combination of sneaky, subtle and vicious. The
> phrase crept into on-air talk. In time, the radio
> station's owner acquired a sports-oriented station
> whose employees picked up the phrase and eventually
> began using it on highly-rated programs.
>
> --- Sam Clements <SClements at NEO.RR.COM> wrote:
>
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail
>> header -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society
>> <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Sam Clements <SClements at NEO.RR.COM>
>> Subject:      Phrase-"thrown under the bus"
>>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---------
>>
>> Couldn't find it in the archives.
>>
>> I've become aware of it in the last few months, but
>> upon reading it =
>> twice this weekend in stories, I just have to ask
>> who invented it?  =
>> Fred?
>>
>> A news story today about steroids/Jason Grimsley
>>
>> "I don't have a comment," added Tejada, who was also
>> involved in a =
>> steroid controversy with former teammate Rafael
>> Palmeiro. "What can I =
>> do? I just played one [year] with Grimsley. I
>> already got thrown under =
>> the bus with Palmeiro. I'm not worried about it, and
>> I said I don't have =
>> a comment."=20
>>
>> Then, in a story about the Foley affair,  I read it
>> again.
>>
>> So, I Google "under the bus" using their News
>> search, and got an =
>> astounding 588 hits!
>>
>> Hopefully this indicates the expression has "jumped
>> the shark" and will =
>> soon disappear.
>>
>> Sam Clements
>>
>>
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