whisper campaign
2
7.5
- noun
- /ˈwɪspər kæmˈpeɪn/
- Literature
:
campaña de rumores
- It says a whisper campaign is inadequate to the moment.
Examples
-
The problem is the "mainstream liberal media" giving such insidious men who start whisper campaigns a platform to spread their mischief.
Blog text (19) -
Over the course of eight months, however, I have been for the most part emotionally numb to the behavior, the accusations, and the subsequent "hush up" whisper campaign.
Blog text (22) -
I happen to be a Democrat, contrary to the latest whisper campaign.
Blog text (3) -
It says a whisper campaign is inadequate to the moment.
-
Ruscetti well-ventilated his annoyance over what he calls the "whisper campaign" about contamination.
Blog text (13) -
In some ways, he's surprised there hasn't been much evidence presented yet of "dirty tricks" online, such as the whisper campaign during the 2000 primaries alleging that John McCain had an illegitimate child.
Blog text (12) -
The senator faced a damaging whisper campaign that questioned her ethics during the election.
-
After the controversial vote, a whisper campaign emerged, tarnishing his reputation among constituents.
-
The company suffered from a whisper campaign that spread rumors about its financial stability.
Synonyms
40
7.1
To harm someone's reputation by saying untrue things about them in public
21
7.0
Trying to damage someone's reputation with false or harmful statements
16
5.5
An organized effort to hurt someone's reputation by making false or unfair accusations
15
7.3
Hurts someone's reputation on purpose by spreading false or harmful stories
9
4.8
Making unfair personal attacks to damage someone's reputation in politics
2
7.4
Organized effort to spread secret bad rumors to make people think badly of someone
Spreading harmful gossip to hurt people or cause drama
An attempt to damage someone's reputation by making false claims
Antonyms
How Public
1
4.0
16
5.5
- Literature
2
7.5
- Informal
184
1.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'whisper' (secret/quiet speech) and 'campaign' (an organized set of actions) combine in an immediately interpretable way to suggest an organized, covert effort to communicate; a B1 learner who knows both words can infer a secretive, coordinated dissemination. However, the specific pragmatic nuance that this effort involves spreading rumors or deliberately harming someone's reputation is an evaluative detail that may not be fully predictable without prior exposure, so the phrase is only partially compositional.
Etymology
Whisper campaign comes from a simple image: whisper is a very quiet way to speak and campaign is a planned effort. Imagine people quietly sharing negative stories as part of a plan so the harm spreads slowly; that's why it means 'a secret attempt to spread rumors or negative information to harm someone's reputation'.