hot-button
Polarizing debate topic
Hot-button describes issues or topics that provoke strong emotional reactions or controversy: hot-button issues like abortion and gun control, a hot-button topic in the campaign.
The term comes from the idea of a button that, when pressed, triggers an immediate intense response.
Something that pushes your hot buttons activates your sensitivities or triggers your anger.
Inclined toward disagreement
- divisiveCausing sharp disagreement
- polarizingCausing sharp division
- inflammatoryTending to provoke outrage
- sensitiveEasily affected emotionally
charged · explosive · volatile · heated · provocative · touchy · fraught · incendiary
Ending a pregnancy
- immigrationRelocating abroad permanently
- gun controlFirearm ownership restrictions
- healthcareOrganized provision of treatment
- climate changePlanetary atmospheric transformation
taxation · welfare · affirmative action · same-sex marriage · death penalty · voter ID · border security · religious liberty
News article title
- coverageExtent of inclusion
- soundbiteBrief broadcast excerpt
- punditProfessional opinion-giver
- talking pointPre-crafted argument for repetition
spin · clickbait · viral · news cycle · op-ed · debate · panel · airtime
Public expression of disapproval
- rallyGathering for a cause
- petitionFormal written appeal
- boycottOrganized economic protest
- advocacyPleading for a cause
grassroots · mobilization · demonstration · campaign · movement · pushback · backlash · lobbying
contentious
Inclined toward disagreement
- divisiveCausing sharp disagreement
- polarizingCausing sharp division
- inflammatoryTending to provoke outrage
sensitive · charged · explosive · volatile · heated · provocative · touchy · fraught · incendiary · wedge
abortion
Ending a pregnancy
- immigrationRelocating abroad permanently
- gun controlFirearm ownership restrictions
- healthcareOrganized provision of treatment
climate change · taxation · welfare · affirmative action · same-sex marriage · death penalty · voter ID · border security · religious liberty · critical race theory
headline
News article title
talking point · spin · clickbait · viral · news cycle · op-ed · debate · panel · airtime · ratings
protest
Public expression of disapproval
advocacy · grassroots · mobilization · demonstration · campaign · movement · pushback · backlash · lobbying · awareness
hot-buttonuncontroversial
Not subject to debate
noncontroversial · innocuous · anodyne · uncontentious · unobjectionable
hot-buttontrivial
Lacking significance or weight
unimportant · minor · peripheral · back-burner · low-priority
hot-buttonback-burner
Status of deprioritized tasks
low-priority · dormant · settled · dead · moot