[Ads-l] Antedating of "Disinformation"

Sun May 14 15:46:32 UTC 2023

In addition to the 1939/1940 use I posted here today:

Image Source: www.telegraph.co.uk<https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/9184293/Russian-schools-to-keep-exercise-books-with-portrait-of-Joseph-Stalin.html>
Joseph Stalin
In 1923 Russian revolutionary and poliician Joseph Stalin[Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Stalin>, who had previously served as the first editor of Pravda[Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pravda> when it was the official newspaper of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, coined the term desinformatsiya[Offsite Link]<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%B7%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%84%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%86%D0%B8%D1%8F> as the name of a KGB black propaganda[Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_propaganda> department. Stalin gave the department what he thought was French-sounding name in order to claim the name had a Western origin. "Russian use began with a "special disinformation office" in 1923.[5][Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disinformation#cite_note-manningromerstein-5> Disinformation was defined in Great Soviet Encyclopedia[Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Soviet_Encyclopedia> (1952) as "false information with the intention to deceive public opinion".[1][Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disinformation#cite_note-pacepa-1>[2][Offsite Link]<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disinformation#cite_note-bittman1985-2>

https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=5069

stephen
________________________________
From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
Sent: Sunday, May 14, 2023 9:52 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Antedating of "Disinformation"

FDR used the word "disinformation" in 1940. I suspect FDR used
"disinformation" with the sense: deliberate misinformation spread by
political opponents.

Date: May 1, 1940
Newspaper: The Bellingham Herald
Newspaper Location: Bellingham, Washington
Article: President Defends Transfer of CAA
Author: Associated Press
Quote Page 10, Column 5
Database: Newspapers.com

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-bellingham-herald-disinformation/124644117/__;!!OToaGQ!oDfjrZ3qYRTnw0xdiwsrGKxS2Hs3-p6wN_Q5-YtFq_cDu6lR5b1roEVEUGV4QmyGc48QtIQYC4K5-JMuY-fMqrvJFQ$

[Begin excerpt]
President Roosevelt in a formal statement yesterday declared a "flood
of disinformation" had been circulated in opposition to his order
placing the Civil Aeronautics Authority, now an independent agency, in
the commerce department.
The chief executive said much of the "misinformation" had "fallen of
its own absurdity and needs no comment."
[End excerpt]

Here is the OED definition for disinformation (sense a)

[Begin excerpt]
The dissemination of deliberately false information, esp. when
supplied by a government or its agent to a foreign power or to the
media, with the intention of influencing the policies or opinions of
those who receive it; false information so supplied.
[End excerpt]

Garson

On Sun, May 14, 2023 at 9:16 AM Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
>
> Is there any evidence that the current sense of “disinformation" referring to a proper category (“deliberately….”) of misinformation—
>
> The dissemination of deliberately false information, esp. when supplied by a government or its agent to a foreign power or to the media, with the intention of influencing the policies or opinions of those who receive it; false information so supplied.
> [OED]
>
> —predates 1955, the first OED cite?  A google ngram search reveals a sudden palpable rise in usage around 1980 and another spike currently ongoing.
>
> LH
>
> > On May 14, 2023, at 8:22 AM, Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU> wrote:
> >
> > Yes, I think Jon's suggestion of a simple synonym for ordinary "misinformation" is likely.
> >
> > Fred
> >
> >
> > ________________________________
> > From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>> on behalf of Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM <mailto:wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>>
> > Sent: Saturday, May 13, 2023 5:30 PM
> > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>>
> > Subject: Re: Antedating of "Disinformation"
> >
> > I wonder if this is either a typo influenced by "disseminated" or a simple
> > synonym for ordinary "misinformation."
> >
> > JL
> >
> > On Sat, May 13, 2023 at 5:06 PM Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu> wrote:
> >
> >> disinformation (OED 1955)
> >>
> >> 1887 _Medicine Lodge_ (Kansas) _Cresset_ 17 Feb. 3/1 (Newspapers.com) The
> >> amount of disinformation disseminated by the Sun City delegation is immense.
> >>
> >> Fred Shapiro
> >>
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
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> >>
> >
> >
> > --
> > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
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