Sky Dancer
Rookie
- Jan 21, 2009
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- #1
Character assassination is the act or attempt to tarnish a person's reputation which may involve exaggeration or manipulation of facts to present an untrue picture of the targeted person.
We see this in politics all the time. Rather than dispute the qualifications of a political candidate we attack his or her character. Character assassination is a campaign strategy in elections. President Obama is continually attacked on character rather than his policies. Herman Cain lost his candidacy for the same.
It's also a logical fallacy called "ad hominem". Obama's policies must be flawed because he is "that" kind of person.
It's rampant in political debate forums. Discuss the ethics of this strategy.
We see this in politics all the time. Rather than dispute the qualifications of a political candidate we attack his or her character. Character assassination is a campaign strategy in elections. President Obama is continually attacked on character rather than his policies. Herman Cain lost his candidacy for the same.
It's also a logical fallacy called "ad hominem". Obama's policies must be flawed because he is "that" kind of person.
It's rampant in political debate forums. Discuss the ethics of this strategy.