Bafflegab

We have all heard it. A torrent of sentence fragments is spoken by someone who should know what they are talking about. The tone and delivery are confident, and hearing the incomplete thought, you might even think you should understand and be able to complete it by inference. But, the speaker goes on with another and another so fast that the listener doesn’t have time to process. Ultimately, you are baffled about what was said because nothing intelligible was said. If the speaker is powerful or respected, the confidence they projected may cause you to feel embarrassed to ask for clarification. The speaker has filled the available airtime with confident-sounding noise but has said nothing meaningful or quotable.

Technology allows the press to transcribe each word of such utterances. Journalists can pour over the word salad and sometimes infer meaning. However, objective critical thinkers are not inclined to be so accommodating. They recognize the rhetorical technique for what it is: bafflegab.

Doug Muder develops this insight about such journalistic indulgences, “sanewashing,” better than I can . . .

The Word of the Week: Sanewashing

For the press that headlined every Biden flub, Trump’s wild delusions aren’t news. At least now we have a word to describe their failure. Let’s start here: At a Moms for “Li…