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| 'Post-truth' declared word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries | 'Post-truth' declared word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| Oxford Dictionaries has declared "post-truth" as its 2016 international word of the year, reflecting what it called a "highly-charged" political 12 months. | Oxford Dictionaries has declared "post-truth" as its 2016 international word of the year, reflecting what it called a "highly-charged" political 12 months. |
| It is defined as an adjective relating to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeals. | It is defined as an adjective relating to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeals. |
| Its selection follows June's Brexit vote and the US presidential election. | Its selection follows June's Brexit vote and the US presidential election. |
| Oxford Dictionaries' Casper Grathwohl said post-truth could become "one of the defining words of our time". | Oxford Dictionaries' Casper Grathwohl said post-truth could become "one of the defining words of our time". |
| Post-truth, which has become associated with the phrase "post-truth politics", was chosen ahead of other political terms, including "Brexiteer" and "alt-right". | Post-truth, which has become associated with the phrase "post-truth politics", was chosen ahead of other political terms, including "Brexiteer" and "alt-right". |
| It was chosen from a shortlist selected to reflect the social, cultural, political, economic, and technological trends and events of 2016. | It was chosen from a shortlist selected to reflect the social, cultural, political, economic, and technological trends and events of 2016. |
| Post-truth: Here are some fakes we debunked earlier | |
| Oxford Dictionaries says post-truth is thought to have been first used in 1992. | Oxford Dictionaries says post-truth is thought to have been first used in 1992. |
| However, it says the frequency of its usage increased by 2,000% in 2016 compared with last year, coinciding with the EU referendum and the campaign for the White House in the US. | However, it says the frequency of its usage increased by 2,000% in 2016 compared with last year, coinciding with the EU referendum and the campaign for the White House in the US. |
| Mr Grathwohl said: "Fuelled by the rise of social media as a news source and a growing distrust of facts offered up by the establishment, post-truth as a concept has been finding its linguistic footing for some time," he said. | Mr Grathwohl said: "Fuelled by the rise of social media as a news source and a growing distrust of facts offered up by the establishment, post-truth as a concept has been finding its linguistic footing for some time," he said. |
| "We first saw the frequency really spike this year in June with buzz over the Brexit vote and again in July when Donald Trump secured the Republican presidential nomination. | "We first saw the frequency really spike this year in June with buzz over the Brexit vote and again in July when Donald Trump secured the Republican presidential nomination. |
| "Given that usage of the term hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, I wouldn't be surprised if post-truth becomes one of the defining words of our time." | "Given that usage of the term hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, I wouldn't be surprised if post-truth becomes one of the defining words of our time." |
| 'Spasms of history' | |
| Dr Claire Hardaker, lecturer in forensic linguistics at Lancaster University, said "freak moments" that get people talking - such as the referendum or the US election - are key to the creation of new words. | |
| "When you look back at the dictionary, you get some words that are a spasm of history and they very quickly fall out of use," she said. "They are fashionable, they are trendy and they die. | |
| "Others live on and become part of our language. But it is very unpredictable." | |
| Shorter words tend to live on for longer, said Dr Hardaker, and there is what she calls a "neologistic razor" to cut down on creations meaning the same thing. | |
| "But you need that event, to have that psychological need that there has got to be a word for it, like with post-truth," she added. "There is an enormous amount of discussion around it and it is really important that it reaches a critical mass to give them a way to express it." | |
| The 2016 shortlist | |
| Last year, Oxford Dictionaries chose a "pictograph" as its word of the year for the first time ever. | Last year, Oxford Dictionaries chose a "pictograph" as its word of the year for the first time ever. |
| It said the "face with tears of joy emoji" best represented "the ethos, mood, and preoccupations of 2015". | It said the "face with tears of joy emoji" best represented "the ethos, mood, and preoccupations of 2015". |