redbaiter
Anti-leftist smear artist
A redbaiter is someone who accuses others of being communists or communist sympathizers, typically to discredit them politically.
The term emerged during mid-20th-century anti-communist campaigns, especially McCarthyism: The redbaiter destroyed careers with unsubstantiated allegations.
Today it often implies reckless or bad-faith accusations rather than genuine concern about communist infiltration.
Politically-motivated accusation without evidence
- anticommunismOpposition to collectivist ideology
- communistCollectivist political adherent
- subversiveSeeking to undermine authority
- leftistAdvocate for progressive politics
socialist · Marxist · Bolshevik · radical · Trotskyist · Maoist · Leninist · Stalinist
Incite a response
antagonize · heckle · harass · intimidate · fearmongering · demagoguery · inquisition · interrogation
McCarthyism
Politically-motivated accusation without evidence
- anticommunismOpposition to collectivist ideology
- communistCollectivist political adherent
- subversiveSeeking to undermine authority
leftist · socialist · Marxist · Bolshevik · radical · Trotskyist · Maoist · Leninist · Stalinist · pinko
provoke
Incite a response
inflame · antagonize · heckle · harass · intimidate · fearmongering · demagoguery · inquisition · interrogation · expose
smear
Spread or defame
- slanderSpoken false defamation
- defamationFalse statements harming reputation
- vilifyAttack someone's reputation
discredit · denigrate · impugn · malign · stigmatize · calumny · aspersion · besmirch · blacken · tarnish