smear campaign
Deliberate character assassination
A smear campaign is a deliberate effort to damage someone's reputation through spreading damaging information—true, exaggerated, or fabricated.
The term implies coordinated, sustained attacks rather than isolated criticism: The candidate accused his opponent of running a smear campaign.
Political contexts dominate, but smear campaigns target anyone in public life.
Spoken false defamation
- libelPrinted defamation
- mudslingingMalicious personal attacks
- character assassinationDestroying someone's good name
- vilificationAbusive condemnation of someone
calumny · denigration · besmirch · tarnish · taint · dishonor · disrepute · stigma
False data spread unintentionally
- fake newsIntentionally deceptive media content
- fabricationDeliberately untrue statement
- falsificationDeliberate alteration of truth
- distortionTwisting from original state
spin · manipulation · propaganda · deception · half-truth · doctored · misleading · sensationalism
slander
Spoken false defamation
- libelPrinted defamation
- mudslingingMalicious personal attacks
- character assassinationDestroying someone's good name
vilification · calumny · denigration · besmirch · tarnish · taint · dishonor · disrepute · stigma · scandal
misinformation
False data spread unintentionally
- fake newsIntentionally deceptive media content
- fabricationDeliberately untrue statement
- falsificationDeliberate alteration of truth
distortion · spin · manipulation · propaganda · deception · half-truth · doctored · misleading · sensationalism · yellow journalism
- campaigningcandidate, canvassing, fundraising, rallies, rally
- dirty trickscheating, lying, deceit, trickery, deception
- disparagementdefame, denigrate, disparage, malign, slander
- reputationreputation, reputable, bad reputation, repute, disreputable
- aggressive tacticsblitz, blitzkrieg, frontal assault, offensive, attack mode
- campaign jargonstump speech, talking points, sound bites, soundbite, soundbites
smear campaignpromotional campaign
Coordinated advertising effort
puff piece · charm offensive · hagiography · tribute · positive spin
stain, campaign, smear, smudge, smeared, campaigner, smeary, campaigns, smears