Slate‘s Jack Shafer argues that the word loophole should be banned from straight news reporting: “It’s a loaded, partisan word, one that implies wrongdoing and scandal where none exists, and inserting it into a political argument gives the inserter the upper hand. When loophole creeps into news stories, they start to read like editorials.” It’s a fair point that he buttresses with firm examples.
There are other words that reporters and headline writers routinely use that also insinuate wrongdoing without having to actually provide any evidence. My favorite example is claim and its variants, which imply that someone is lying.
I’m sure there are others. What are your candidates for banishment?
