CCT300+Lab9

Truthiness

Ben Zimmer’s article discussed both the political, social and academic dynamics of the word – “Truthiness”. First publicized by Stephen Colbert on “The Word” segment on Oct 17th, 2005, “truthiness” stands for “truth that comes from the gut, not books”; it represents "the quality of preferring concepts or facts one wishes to be true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true." The American Dialect Society then officially introduces “Truthiness” as the word of the year. I am impressed by how one person could exert so much influence as to determine what word to be included within the daily discourse of a society. Scholars before Colby have brought up validations of the word “Truthiness”. But, it wasn’t until the subject resurfaced again in Colby’s three-minute segment, that the word was finally recognized and adopted by the public. I believe the story of “Truthiness” is a testimony of the power of popular culture. A TV show gag or a comedian’s satirical remark maybe all it takes to persuade the mass to accept a new concept. Not only because it’s entertaining, people find the materials more relatable to their lives. Audiences might find themselves giggling at Colby’s justifications on the Iraq war and Sadam Hussain and thought to themselves “That is so true”. As a result, Colby’s show is probably ten times more effective disseminating the word than to do it academically through formal announcements or workshops on how to use the word correctly. Indeed, people learn better through “guts” than through “books”. Reference: http://www.merriam-webster.com/info/06words.htm