Headlines

Fake news is 2017's word of the year

Philstar.com

November 2, 2017 | 2:15pm

Blogger Mocha Uson, an assistant secretary of the Presidential Communications Office, appears at the Senate hearing on the proliferation of fake news on Oct. 4, 2017. Uson, who has been criticized over gaffes in posting wrong information, has decried being a victim of fake news herself. Senate PRIB

MANILA, Philippines — "Fake news," Collins dictionary's 2017 word of the year, has been a favorite defense of US President Donald Trump against critics and the subject of a Senate hearing in the Philippines.

The word rose to prominence this year with an unprecedented usage increase of 365 percent since 2016.

Collins defines "fake news" as "false, often sensational, information disseminated under the guise of news reporting."

We take a look at the #etymology behind our #CollinsWOTY top 5 shortlisted words https://t.co/saeub9LVdV #fakenews #WordOfTheYear pic.twitter.com/kINWs4Lswq
— Collins Dictionary (@CollinsDict) November 2, 2017

The dictionary traced that the association of the word "fake" with "news" originated from the field of comedy "as exemplified by shows such as Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show and Chris Morris’s The Day Today."

READ: Duterte camp spent $200,000 for troll army, Oxford study finds

By 2005, however, the term began to be applied to false news stories that have malicious intent instead of satire.

"Then in January 2017 Donald Trump dismissed reports from the CNN news agency about his alleged links with Russia as 'fake news.' Claims that potentially damaging stories were 'fake news,' and enquiries into the proliferation of such stories were a major part of the news agenda in 2017," Collins said.

Collins identified this year's shortlist by monitoring word output across all forms of media and by consulting their 4.5 billion word database. It checked for the words that have grown in visibility the most over the past year, reflected social and cultural developments and gained traction.

READ: Nancy to Mocha: It’s time to decide, asec or blogger?

Other words that made it to Collins' shortlist were:

Antifa

noun: (1) an antifascist organization (2) a member of an antifascist organization adjective: (3) involving, belonging to, or relating to an antifascist organization

Corbynmania

noun: fervent enthusiasm for Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the UK Labour Party

Cuffing season

noun: the period of autumn and winter, when single people are considered likely to seek settled relationships rather than engage in casual affairs

Echo chamber

noun: an environment, especially on a social media site, in which any statement of opinion is likely to be greeted with approval because it will only be read or heard by people who hold similar views

Fidget spinner

noun: a small toy comprising two or three prongs arranged around a central bearing, designed to be spun by the fingers as means of improving concentration or relieving stress

Gender-fluid

adjective: not identifying exclusively with one gender rather than another

Gig economy

noun: an economy in which there are few permanent employees and most jobs are assigned to temporary or freelance workers

Insta

adjective: of or relating to the photo-sharing application Instagram

Unicorn

noun: (1) an imaginary creature depicted as a white horse with one long spiraled horn growing from its forehead, regarded as a symbol of innocence and purity (2) a recently launched business enterprise that is valued at more than one billion dollars

— Mikas Matsuzawa