Loaded language

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Loaded language is verbiage that attempts to influence the listener or reader by appealing to emotion rather than logic. Types of loaded language include loaded words and loaded questions.

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[edit] Loaded words

Loaded words are words or phrases which have strong emotional overtones or connotations and which evoke strongly positive or negative reactions beyond their literal meaning. For example, the phrase tax relief refers literally to deductions that a person might claim in order to reduce the amount of tax they must pay to their government. However, use of the emotive word relief implies that the tax was an unreasonable burden to begin with.

When Kraft invented processed cheese in the early 1900s, some traditional cheese makers demanded the new cheese be labeled "embalmed cheese" by law. But the government deemed that term too loaded and disparaging and decided to require the label "process cheese" instead.[1]

Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, the word madrassa (which means "school" in Arabic) was loaded with negative connotations by many Westerners that did not speak Arabic and failed to make the distinction between strictly religious Islamic schools and schools that teach primary education subjects.

The Yale Center for the Study of Globalization examined bias in United States newspaper coverage of Pakistan since the September 11, 2001 attacks, and found the term has come to contain a loaded political meaning:[2]

"When articles mentioned 'madrassas,' readers were led to infer that all schools so-named are anti-American, anti-Western, pro-terrorist centers having less to do with teaching basic literacy and more to do with political indoctrination."

Various U.S. public figures have used the word in a negative context, including Newt Gingrich,[2] Donald Rumsfeld,[3] and Colin Powell.[4]

Use of the phrase loaded language may be used to describe the writing or speech of another to make an accusation of demagoguery, or of pandering to the audience. As an umbrella term, loaded language is sometimes used to describe spin, euphemism and doublespeak.[who?]

[edit] Power words

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A power word (or power phrase) is a word (or a phrase) that is used to make one's statement stronger, or to induce an emotional or irrational response. It is a form of a loaded language and is an antonym of euphemism. It is not always the same as a dysphemism or as a cacophemism, both of which imply the use of harsh or vulgar words. Many times power words are used in a semantically correct way, but where a synonym would be more appropriate. The choice is made precisely because of the opinion of an individual or a group.

Power words are used in politics to sell ideas, in advertisements to sell products, and in religions to sell beliefs. Power words will often create an impression that any logical argument against the speaker is absurd, when that is not always the case. The use of a power word that also has a more general meaning can result in the No True Scotsman fallacy.

[edit] Loaded questions

Loaded questions need not contain any loaded words; they are usually said to be loaded if they make a false presupposition. The classic example of a loaded question is "Have you stopped beating your wife?". The question presupposes that the subject did at one time beat his wife, and either a yes or no answer appears to confirm this presupposition as fact, when it may well be false. Similar fallacies are sometimes used by youths to antagonize one another; e.g., "Do your parents know that you are gay?" (implying that, whether the answer is yes or no, the adolescent in question is a homosexual and ought to be ashamed of that fact). See homophobia.

Common examples of loaded questions arise in interviews where the interviewer wishes to make a biased statement or adverse judgment while appearing to be fair and impartial. For example, assume a television reporter were to ask an actress, "Given your history of drug addictions, sexual promiscuity, exhibitionism, and irresponsible behavior generally, are you at all worried that a movie producer might not hire you now, because he or she deems you uninsurable?"

In the field of law, such loaded questions are called "complex questions," or ones that assume facts not yet in evidence. The opposing lawyer or judge may object to such questions asked during cross-examination, so the question can be rephrased.[5] For example, a politician on trial might be asked, "How much do you pay the high-priced call girls you frequently see?" After objection by opposing counsel, the judge would rule that first one must establish that the defendant actually sees these women before inquiring about prices.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Cheese" documentary on Modern Marvels, History Channel (11-22-2007; 12pm-1am).
  2. ^ a b Moeller, Susan (2007-06-21). Jumping on the US Bandwagon for a "War on Terror". Yale Global Online. Yale Center for the Study of Globalization.
  3. ^ Rumsfeld, Donald. "Rumsfeld's war-on-terror memo" (Transcript), USA Today, 2003-10-16. Retrieved on 2008-01-14. 
  4. ^ "Madrassas breeding grounds of terrorists: Powell", The Tribune, 2004-03-11. Retrieved on 2008-01-14. 
  5. ^ Atheism: Logic & Fallacies
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