Truthiness

[Brenda Lester]

Amen, brother.

"Baker, John" <JMB at STRADLEY.COM> wrote:          Does "truthiness" really have defenders as a WOTY?  This kind of
nonce-word, a comic alteration of "truthfulness," seems quintessentially
ephemeral and limited to its originator.  Even "info-snacking" was a
more plausible choice.

        Incidentally, Google Groups reveals that the word, though
doubtless independently re-created by Stephen Colbert or his writers,
did have some degree of pre-existing use.  From 1/9/1995:  "If you want
to complain of annoying fundamentalist outbreaks of one-truthiness, on
the other hand, I would be glad to support you."

        From 8/31/1996:  "Shame on you, this is below the standard of
proof normally required of those determining Truthiness & Falsitude."

        I do not regard these occasional uses (Google Groups says there
are 31 pre-Colbert examples, though some of these appear to be
gibberish) as undercutting the essentially artificial nature of the
purported "word."


John Baker



-----Original Message-----
From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf
Of Janet Marting
Sent: Sunday, January 08, 2006 10:44 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Re: ADS-L Digest - 6 Jan 2006 to 7 Jan 2006 (#2006-8)

Truthiness?  C'mon!  That's a word I'd expect in an email from (just)
one of my undergraduates who has missed half of the semester, trying to
sound astute and plead for my understanding.  Ugh.

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