Truthiness facts for kids
Truthiness is a word made popular by the comedian Stephen Colbert. He first used it on October 17, 2005. This was during the very first episode of his television show The Colbert Report.
The word "truthiness" describes something that feels true, even if it's not based on facts or logic. It's about trusting your gut feeling or instincts, rather than checking the evidence. If something "feels" right, then it has truthiness.
The word became very popular. The American Dialect Society chose "truthiness" as their Word of the Year for 2005. This happened on January 6, 2006. Later, the famous Merriam-Webster dictionary also picked it as their 2006 Word of the Year on December 10, 2006. It was even chosen over the word "google" for this honor.
Stephen Colbert Explains Truthiness
Stephen Colbert talked about "truthiness" on his show. He explained it in a simple way. He said he would speak in plain English.
Colbert joked about people who are very strict about words. He called them "word police." He said they might argue that "truthiness" isn't a real word. But he also said he wasn't a big fan of dictionaries or reference books.
Facts Versus Feelings
Colbert explained that books are full of facts, but they don't have "heart." He believed this difference was dividing the country. He said people were split into two groups. One group thinks with their head, using logic and facts. The other group "knows" with their heart, relying on feelings.
He gave an example using Harriet Miers. She was nominated for a job by the President. Colbert said that if you "think" about her, her nomination might seem strange. But the President said he "knew her heart." This meant he trusted his feelings about her, not just facts.
Colbert also mentioned the Iraq war. He said that if you "think" about it, some reasons for the war might seem unclear. But he asked if taking Saddam Hussein out of power "felt" like the right thing to do. This showed how "truthiness" focuses on feelings over facts.
Images for kids
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Stephen Colbert uses "truthiness" on the debut episode of The Colbert Report
