poisons the well
Attacks source first
Poisons the well is a rhetorical tactic of preemptively discrediting a source or argument before it can be heard: Before she could even speak, he poisoned the well by calling her a known liar.
The metaphor suggests contaminating a water source so no one will drink from it—making an audience distrust information regardless of its merits.
- ad hominemArgument targeting character
- guilt-trippingInducing remorse deliberately
- framingStructural or contextual shaping
- straw manFake version to demolish
- shamingCausing feelings of disgrace
spin · loaded language · false dilemma · undermining · slippery slope · moving the goalposts · scapegoating · dog-whistle politics · gaslighting · prejudicial · projection · dirty tactics · fearmongering · discredit · red herring · appeal to authority · cherry-picking · tone policing